THE  ROMANTIC  ELEMENTS  IN  THE  LIFE  AND  WORKS  OF 
JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 


BY 


MARGARET  EBERT  JFOLEY 
A.  B.  Ohio  Wesleyan  University,  1919 


THESIS 


Submitted  in  Partial  Fulfillment  of  the  Requirements  for  the 


Degree  of 

MASTER  OF  ARTS 


IN 


THE  GRADUATE  SCHOOL 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


1921 


m\ 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


THE  GRADUATE  SCHOOL 


191 


I HEREBY  RECOMMEND  THAT  THE  THESIS  PREPARED  UNDER  MY 


SUPERVISION  BY.  Margaret  Ebert  Foley 


ENTITLED 


in  the  Life  and  Works  of  Jean 


Jacques  Rousseau 


BE  ACCEPTED  AS  FULFILLING  THIS  PART  OF  THE  REQUIREMENTS  FOR 


THE  DEGREE  OF faster  of  Arts 


In  Charge  of  Thesis 


Head  of  Department 


Recommendation  concurred  in* 


Committee 


on 


Final  Examination* 


^Required  for  doctor’s  degree  but  not  for  master’s 

CV'G'C  JL 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2015 


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Table  of  Contents. 


Chap.  page. 

I Introduction  1 

II  Classic  and  Romantic  3 

III  Early  Years  (1712-1728) 7 

IV  Youth  and  Wanderings 15 

V Life  at  Chambery  and  Charmettes  (1732-1741)  ...  29 

VI  Paris  (1741-1756)  32 

VII  L'Kermitage  and  Mont  Louis  (1756-1762)  39 

VIII  Last  Years  and  Death  (1762-1778)  . 51 

IX  Conclusion  . 55 


T 


Chapter  I 
INTRODUCTION 

Before  pointing  out  the  romantic  elements  in  Rousseau, 
which  is  the  aim  in  writing  this  thesis,  we  shall  begin  by  giv- 
ing a short  account  of  the  beginnings  of  Romanticism  as  a move- 
ment, which  had  as  its  leader  Jean  Jacques  Rousseau;  the  causes 
for  this  movement  and  the  conditions  leading  up  to  it.  This 
will  naturally  involve  us  in  a discussion  of  the  eternal  con- 
flict between  Classicism  and  Romanticism.  In  this  discussion 
some  consideration  will  be  given  to  the  exact  meaning  of  the  terms 
Classic  and  Romantic. 

Keeping  the  definitions  of  Romanticism  in  mind,  we  shall 
then  point  out  the  romantic  elements  in  Rousseau,  which  consti- 
tute the  germs  of  the  romantic  ideas  and  ideals  to  be  found  later 
in  the  Romantic  School  at  the  time  of  Victor  Hugo.  If  an  author 
be  an  objective  writer  his  works  can  be  criticized  or  analyzed 
apart  from  his  personality,  although  this  is  not  the  best  of  meth- 
ods. In  the  case  of  Rousseau,  however,  a method  of  this  sort  is 
impossible.  Rousseau,  is  the  most  subjective  of  writers.  His 
works  are  so  closely  bound  up  with  the  events  of  his  life  and  the 
emotional  responses  to  these  events  that  they  cannot  be  separated 
one  from  the  other.  Going  back  to  one  of  our  definitions  of  ro- 
mantic style,  we  find  it  to  be  a self-reflection  of  the  author- 
subjectivity.  Since  self— ref lection  is  one  of  the  features  of 
romantic  style  and  since  we  are  dealing  with  the  romantic  elements 
in  one,  who  is  characterized  as  the  father  of  the  French  romantic 
style,  we  shall  not  be  able  to  overlook  the  events  of  Rousseau’s 


% 


2 


life}  for  it  is  the  emotional  responses  to  these  events  which  are 
reflected  in  his  writings*  Certain  things  made  deep  impressions 
on  him  and  caused  deep  emotions,  which  had  an  outlet  in  his  writ- 
ings. To  understand  these  outlets,  we  must  first  understand  the 
causes  for  them.  In  short,  had  Rousseau  never  lived  a romantic 
life,  we  should  have  no  romantic  writings  from  him.  Thus  the  ro- 
mantic elements  will  be  pointed  out  not  in  his  works  alone  but  in 
his  works  as  they  are  linked  up  with  his  life. 

In  undertaking  to  give  an  account  of  Rousseau's  life,  we 
have  made  more  use  of  his  Confessions  than  any  other  biography. 
Histories  or  biographies  are  most  likely  to  be  objective  and  im- 
personal,. whereas  confessions  such  as  those  of  Rousseau,  the  out- 
pourings of  his  inmost  thoughts  and  desires,  are  more  subjective 
and,  from  the  nature  of  the  case,  better  suit  our  purpose  in  deal- 
ing with  romantic  elements. 


3 


Chapter  II 

CLASSIC  AND  ROMANTIC. 

The  word  Classic  is  derived  from  the  Latin  classicus , 
which  in  the  singular  means  "relating  to  one  of  the  classes  of 
Roman  citizens*"  In  the  plural  classici  we  have  the  meaning  citi- 
zens of  the  first  class.  By  extension  classici  scriptores  indi- 
cates writers  of  the  first  class.  The  word  classical  applied  to 
literature  today  may  mean  the  best  of  a particular  kind  of  writing. 
To  the  European  mind  however  the  Classics  have  meant  the  litera- 
ture of  Greece  and  Rome.  It  is  with  the  latter  conception  of  the 
term  that  w.e  shall  deal  here.,  for  the  former  is  but  a popular  use 
of  it.  Since  it  in  no  way  implies  the  opposite  of  Romanticism,  it 
will  have  no  place  in  this  definition, for  we  are  dealing  with  Clas- 
sicism only  as  it  concerns  Romanticism. 

Modern  Classicism  had  its  beginning  with  the  Renaissance. 
The  Renaissance  brought  about  a desire  for  an  intelligent  study  and 
imitation  of  antiquity.  From  this  study  of  the  ancients  there  grew 
up  a great  love  of  form  and  of  conformity  to  rules.  To  write  as 
Plato  or  Cicero  was  the  ambition  of  all  writers  of  this  time.  Most 
of  them  were  concerned  only  with  imitating  the  style,  not  wishing 
to  go  into  antique  thought.  Some,  however,  went  so  far  as  to  imi- 
tate ideas  and  even  philosophy  of  the  ancients. 

The  Classic  School,  as  an  outgrowth  of  this,  began  in 
France  with  la  Pl^iade,  which  aimed  to  found  French  literature  on 
Greek  and  Latin.,  Ronsard  and  his  disciples  were  desirous  ol  trans- 
planting the  antique  forms  on  French  soil  and  imitating  them  in  the 

French  language.  From  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  through  the 


4 


eighteenth  century  France  was  largely  under  classical  rule.  The 
seventeenth  century,  however,  was  the  only  truly  classical  epoch. 

At  this  time  there  was  real  comprehension  of  the  classical  spirit. 
The  brilliant  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  was  felt  at  this  time,  but 
toward  the  end  of  the  century  we  begin  to  see  the  formal  side  dom- 
inating. That  is  to  say,  the  imitation  and  close  adherence  to  rule 
was  slowly  smothering  the  classical  spirit.  We  see  evidences  of 
this  as  early  as  1674  in  Boileau’s  Art  Foetique . He  tells  us  to 
give  much  attention  to  form.  To  attain  perfection  the  author  must 
rewrite  constantly.  Three  out  of  every  four  words  should  be  erased 
after  they  have  been  written..  His  theory  of  literary  art  is  best 
shown  in  the  following  quotations: 

Quelque  sujet  qu'on  traite  ou  plaisant  ou  sublime, 

Que  toujours  le  bon  sens  s’accorde  avec  la  rime. 

Aimez  done  la  raison:  Que  toujours  vos  Merits 

Empruntent  d’elle  seule  et  leur  lustre  et  leur  prix, 

Hatez-vous  lentement ; et  sans  perdre  courage, 

Vingt  fois  sur  le  metier  remettez  votre  ouvrage . 

Polissez-le  sans  cesse  et  le  repolissez, 

Ajoutez  quelque  fois,  et  souvent  effacez,^) 

To  sum  up  what  we  need  to  remember  about  Classic,  we  may 
say  that  it  consists  in  love  of  form  and  in.  the  following  of  rules, 
hence  conventionality  and  formality;  but  with  true  classic  spirit, 


(1)  Boileau,  Art  Poetique,  Vol.  II,  page  286 

(2)  ib.,  page  288. 

(3)  ib.,  page  305. 


5 


the  style  being  only  a means  to  attain  an  end.  The  Classic  is  the 
clear,  the  orderly  and  the  definite;  it  appeals  to  reason,  seeks  pro- 
portions and  harmony.  A Classicist  may  have  the  most  intense  pas- 
sions, but  delights  in  controlling  them.  His  satisfaction  is  in  self 
control,  poise,  calmness.  The  Classicism  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
known  as  Pseudo-Classicism,  differs  from  that  of  the  truly  Classic 
period  of  the  seventeenth  century  in  emphasizing  solely  the  imitative 
elements.  The  brilliant  spirit  of  the  Renaissance,  which  was  still 
present  in  the  seventeenth  century  and  which  we  see  beginning  to  die 
av/ay  at  the  time  of  Soileau,  had  its  death  blow  in  the  eighteenth 
century. 


The  Romantic  movement  was  not  so  clear  cut  as  the  Classic. 
Classicism  is  as  clear  and  definite  as  its  individual  traits,  where- 
as Romanticism  is  as  vague  and  indefinite  as  its  traits.  Romantic 
elements  have  been  present  in  all  literatures  in  all  ages,  many  ro- 
mantic elements  being  found  even  in  the  Classic  writers.  There  were 
romantic  wri tings  among  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  classical  tenden- 
cies in  the  Middle  Ages.  The'  Odyssey  was  more  romantic  than  the  Ilia 
it  being  in  fact  a romance  rather  than  a hero-epic.  Throughout  Frenc 
literature  we  find  different  authors  in  different  periods  showing  ro- 
mantic tendencies,  and  even  in  the  eighteenth  century,  Prevost  in  his 
Manon  Lescaut  was  treating  passions  of  love  with  some  tendency  toward 
melancholy.  But  lacking  the  emotional  temperament  to  back  his  out- 
pourings, these  did  not  ring  true..  With  Rousseau  the  romantic  ele- 
ments were  assembled  and  for  the  first  time  took  form  in  a movement. 
This  movement  which,  in  its  beginnings,  was  simply  a reaction  against 
eighteenth  century  Classicism,  was  successful  for  two  reasons.  First 
society  was  ready  for  it.  As  we  have  said  eighteenth  century  literature 


6 


had  become  somewhat  stilted.  By  this  time  society  was  probably 
tired  of  such  polished  works  as  were  produced,  and  was  reacting  to 
them  unconsciously,  waiting  for  something  to  appear  to  cause  a con- 
scious reaction.  Second,  Rousseau  with  a true  romantic  temperament 
came  on  the  stage  at  just  the  proper  time  to  start  this  reaction- 
He  appeared  with  the  idea  that  the  world  is  organized  for  the  joy 
of  all  individuals,  and  set  out  to  prove  it.  With  his  emotional 
disposition  to  back  him,  he  started  out  by  portraying  passions  in  so 
true  and  sincere  a manner  and  with  such  depth  of  feeling  that  he 
awoke  in  society  the  slumbering  romantic  traits.  It  was  such  an 
awakening  that  writers  continued  to  folloWjin  his  foot-steps^ for  a 
century  afterward.  Thus  we  see  how  powerful  was  Rousseau  in  being 
able  to  head  a movement.  We  do  not  exaggerate  in  the  least  when  we 
call  him  the  father  of  French  Romanticism. 

The  word  romantic  indicates  tendencies  opposite  to  those 
of  the  Classic  in  Art..  The  Romantic  is  the  vague,  the  indefinite  - 
It  is  a dim  longing,  a reaching  out  for  something  vague  and  unde- 
termined. It  appeals  to  the  imagination  to  the  exclusion  of  reason. 
It  has  no  regard  for  proportion,  seeks  suggestion  rather  than  clear 
and  full  expression,  melody  rather  than  harmony,  the  individual 
rather  than  the  typical.  It  is  abnormal  rather  than  normal,  morbid 
rather  than  healthy.  The  ego  also  plays  a large  part  in  Romanticism. 
Other  elements  are,  a love  of  solitude  connected  with  love  of  naturej 
and  uncontrolled  emotions,  of  which  the  most  characteristic  is  mel- 
ancholy, at  times  becoming  a feeling  of  despair.  Last  but  not  least, 
it  is  a reactionary  spirit.  That  is,  reaction  to  that  which  has 
gone  before.  It  is  in  this  last  that  Rousseau  figures  primarily. 


7 


Chapter  III 

EARLY  YEARS  (1712-1728) . 

Jean  Jacques  Rousseau,  son  of  Isaac  and  Suzanne  Rousseau, 
was  born  June  28,  1712.  We  get  a first  romantic  touch  by  using 
Rousseau’s  own  words  concerning  his  entrance  into  this  world.  "Je 
coutai  la  vie  a ma  mere  et  ma  naissance  fut  le  premier  de  mes  mal- 
heurs.^'  He  was  born  we ak  and  sickly  and  had  to  be  nursed  with  the 
utmost  care  in  order  that  his  life  might  be  saved.  This  tender  care 
was  given  him  by  an  Aunt,  who  was  devoted  to  him  during  his  early 
years.  As  regards  the  sources  of  the  traits  of  character,  which  we 
are  to  see  appear  in  Rousseau  as  he  grows  from  childhood  to  manhood, 
we  may  say  that  his  mother  is  described  to  us  as  being  pretty  and 
somewhat  coquettish,  but  without  strongly  marked  characteristics 
which  appear  later  in  Rousseau.  His  father  on  the  other  hand  exer- 
cised a great  influence  over  him.  Not  only  did  he  hand  down  certain 
traits  but  created  an  atmosphere  in  which  they  would  naturally  thrive 
Isaac  Rousseau,  the  father,  was  highly  emotional,  irritable  and  in- 
clined to  be  quarrelsome,  had  a very  restless  disposition,  lofty  am- 
bitions, but  no  strength  of  character,  no  patience  or  perseverance 
to  help  him  realize  them.  He  was  always  shirking  responsibility. 

One  pronounced  fault  of  his  was  always  to  desert  the  matter  in  hand, 
when  on  the  eve  of  success,  and  pass  on  to  something  newr  and  unex- 
plored. Money  went  as  fast  as  he  could  earn  it.  These  traits  just 
enumerated  were  handed  down  almost  in  their  entirety  to  Jean  Jacques.. 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  7. 


8 

As  to  the  atmosphere,  which  the  father  created,  we  have  first  of  all 
his  emotional  side  in  the  presence  of  his  son.  He  seemed  to  take 
great  joy  in  weeping,  often  arranging  sorrowful  settings  in  order 
that  he  might  indulge  in  this  pleasure.  A favorite  means  of  doing 
this  was  to  speak  with  Jean  Jacques  about  the  latter's  mother,  and 
as  Jean  Jacques  tells  us,  the  conversation  was  always  accompanied  by 
showers  of  tears. 

It  was  such  a common  occurrence  that  in  his  boyish  mind 
the  mention  of  his  mother's  name  came  to  be  connected  with  his  fa- 
ther's tears. 

Quani  il  me  disait  Jean-Jacques,  parlons  de  ta  mere,  je 
lui  disais,  He  bieni.  Mon  pere  nous  allons  done  pleurer;  et  ce  mot 


seul  lui  tirait  deja  des  larrnes. 


CD 


Rousseau's  early  childhood  was  spent  almost  entirely  with 
his  aunt  and  father.  He  never  went  to  school  and  had  no  companion 
his  own  age.  It  was  probably  because  of  his  lack  of  companions  and 
his  close  association  with  older  people  that  he  was  a precocious 
child.  We  find  him  at  the  age  of  seven  not  only  reading  novels  but, 
what  is  more  remarkable,  seeming  to  understand  them.  However . marvel- 
ous this  novel  reading  may  seem,  it  was  very  dangerous  for  one  so 
young.  Rousseau  thereby  gained  a knowledge  of  passions  at  too  early 
an  age.  His  senses  were  stimulated  before  his  intelligence  or  rea- 
soning was  strong  enough  to  hold  them  in  balance.  Thus  this  boy, 
frail  in  body  and  developed  beyond  his  years  in  mind,  was  early  swept 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  6. 


s 


in  a tide  of  emotion.  Needless  to  say  he  was  affected  both  physi- 
cally and  mentally.  As  regards  the  mental  side  there  grew  up  from 
this  reading  strange,  distorted  notions  of  life,  which  make  them- 
selves felt  later.  His  father  did  not  seem  to  realize  the  harm  this 
extensive  romantic  reading  could  do.  Instead  of  forbidding  him  this 
sort  of  reading  and  turning  his  boyish  curiosity  into  other  and 
safer  channels,  he  used  to  read  and  discuss  these  books  with  him. 
Rousseau  tells  us  how  they  used  to  take  turns  reading  night  after 
night,  and  how  their  enthusiasm  would  grow  sometimes  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  they  would  read  on  with  no  regard  for  the  passing  hours, 
until  with  the  chirping  of  the  birds  they  would  suddenly  realize 
that  morning  had  come..  Then  the  father,  for  an  instant  probably, 
feeling  his  responsibility  would  say,  "Let  us  go  to  bed.  I am  more 
of  a child  than  you."^-^  This  early  life  in  the  home  was  a very 
happjr  and  care  free  one  for  the  boy.  The  extremely  sensitive  nature 
of  Rousseau  is  shown  at  this  early  stage,  demanding  that  he  be  in 
harmon3^  with  his  surroundings.  This  life  with  his  father,  aunt  and 
nurse  satisfied  the  demand.  He  loved  them  and  was  loved  and  cared 
for  tenderly  by  them.  That  was  all  that  was  necessary  for  happi- 
ness says  Rousseau..  He  was  a very  clever  child  and  his  father  and 
aunt  were  quick  to  see  it.  They  responded, as  all  doting  parents 
respond  to  the  clever  child,  by  petting  him  and  overlooking  his 
faults.  While  these  two  people  were  being  the  kindest  to  Jean  Jac- 
ques they  were  unconsciously  doing  him  the  most  harm.  He  was  al- 
ways allowed  to  do  as  he  liked,  was  never  taught  self-denial  and 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  8.. 


10 


scarcely  knew  the  meaning  of  a scolding.  If  some  attempt  at  disci- 
pline was  made  he  usually  thwarted  it  by  some  childish  cleverness 

for  which  he  was  complimented  as  in  the  following  case: 

/ / / 

Un  soir  . . . etant  condamne  pour  quelque  espieglerie 

a mfaller  coucher  sans  souper  et  passant  par  la  cuisine  je  vis  et 
flairai  le  roti  tournant  a la  broche.  On  etait  autour  du  feu:  il 
fallut  en  passant  galuer  tout  le  monde . Quand  la  ronde  fut  faite, 
lorgnant  du  coin  de  1‘oeil  ce  r3ti  qui  avait  si  bonne  mine  et  qui 
sentait  si  bon,  je  ne  pus  m'abstenir  de  lui  faire  aussi  la  reverence, 
et  de  lua  dire,  d'  un  ton  piteux,  Adieu,  roti.  Cette  saillie  de 
naivete  parut  si  plaisante,  qur  on  me  fit  rester  a souper. ^ 

The  intended  scolding  thus  ended  always  in  a petting,  and 
the  fault  which  it  was  meant  to  correct  went  on  grov/ing  and  develop- 
ing unhindered.  This  pleasant  home  life  was  suddenly  interrupted 
when  Isaac  was  forced  to  leave  the  country  on  account  of  a serious 
quarrel.  He  left  his  son,  then  ten  years  of  age,  in  the  care  of 
Gabriel  Bernard,  an  uncle  of  the  boy.  This  uncle  placed  Jean  Jac- 
ques together  with  his  own  son,  in  the  home  of  a minister  named 
Lambercier.  This  minister  lived  with  his  unmarried  sister  at  Bos- 
sey,  a village  near  Geneva.  Here  the  two  boys  devoted  themselves  to 

study,  and  in  spare  moments  worked  in  the  garden  and  enjoyed  other 

O 

outdoor  activities.  The  countryside  was  a novelty  to  Rousseau. 

Here  was  born  his  passionate  love  for  nature  and  the  joys  to  be  de- 
rived from  the  simple  country  life.  The  following  quotation  shows 
what  an  impression  his  surroundings  at  Bossey  made  on  him. 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  46. 


11 


La  campagne  etait  pour  moi  si  nouvelle,  que  je  ne  pouvais 
me  lasser  d’en  jouir.  Je  pris  pour  elle  un  gout  si  vif,  qu*il  n'a 
jamais  pu  s’eteindre. 

(1) 

Rousseau  and  his  cousin  spent  two  years  in  the  home  of  M. 

Lambercier.  At  the  end  of  that  time  an  incident  occurred  which, 

says  Rousseau,  made  further  stay  impossible  * He  was  accused  one  day 

of  a fault  which  he  had  not  committed  and  for  which  he  was  severely 

punished.  This  seems  to  have  made  a deep  impression  on  him.  To 

his  boyish  mind,  this  unjust  treatment  at  the  hands  of  those  he  had 

loved  took  the  proportions  of  a tragedy-  It  put  an  end  to  his 

childish  existence  so  he  says.  His  innocent  faith  in  people  was 

(3; 

shattered,  and  in  its  place  was  a sullen  pessimism.  He  no  longer 
took  pleasure  in  his  outdoor  sports.  His  time  was  now  spent  nurs- 
ing his  grievances.  His  reaction  was  not  the  reaction  of  a normal 
child  but  that  of  an  abnormally  emotional  person  for  whom  trifles 
assume  immense  proportions.  From  then  on  life  was  so  unbearable  at 
Bossey  that  he  returned  to  the  home  of  his  uncle. 

Rousseau  tried  to  prove  that  this  was  a turning  point  in 
his  life;  that  his  disposition  was  changed  entirely  by  this  episode 
at  Bossey.  He  says  that  until  then  he  had  had  an  innocent  child* s 
outlook  on  life.  Everything  was  ideal,  he  had  a simple  trust  in 
everyone  and  knew  nothing  about  the  ways  of  life  or  man.  When  we 
take  into  account  his  early  novel-reading,  through  which  he  learned 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  16 

(2)  ib.,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  25 

(3)  ib. , Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  28 


. 


. 


, 


12 

much  about  people  and  life,  and  add  to  this  his  own  account  of  the 
awakening  of  his  sensuality  at  Bossey,  we  feel  that  he  did  not 
have  the  serene  naive  childhood  he  would  have  us  believe.  Rousseau’ s 
whole  life,  as  v/e  shall  see,  was  influenced  by  his  environment  in 
both  his  good  and  bad  traits.  Previous  to  the  episode  at  Bossey, 
his  surroundings  had  been  calm  and  peaceful;  he  had  reacted  accord- 
ingly by  being  happy  and  showing  a calmness  and  gentleness  of  spir- 
it. Kis  unjust  treatment  at  the  hands  of  M.  Lambercier  served  only 
as  a stimulus  to  bring  out  some  of  the  bad  traits  which  had  up  to 
this  point  lain  dormant. 

After  leaving  Bossey  he  was  apprenticed  by  his  uncle  to 
an  engraver,  Abel  Ducommum.  This  man  had  a very  violent  temper  and 
was  brutal  in  his  treatment  of  Jean  Jacques.  Here  we  observe  to  a 
greater  extent  the  kind  of  response  we  get  when  Rousseau  is  out  of 
harmony  with  his  surroundings.  In  this  new  position  he  became  lazy, 
grew  restless  and  careless,  lost  all  self-respect  and  even  stooped 
to  stealing  and  lying.  He  soon  learned  that  his  childish  clever- 
ness, which  had  saved  him  from  many  scoldings,  was  of  no  use  with 
this  hard  master.  Thus  he  was  forced  to  endure  all  his  scoldings 
and  beatings  and  became,  because  of  them,  sullen  and  vicious.  His 
only  joy  was  in  secretly  reading  licentious  books  which  he  got  from 
a circulating  library..  These  stimulated  his  already  aroused  pas- 
sions, and  things  went  from  bad  to  worse.  In  reading  these  books 
he  always  put  himself  in  the  place  of  the  characters  and  mentally 
acted  out  their  parts.  From  this  early  practice  came  later  his 


(1)  Confessions,  Fartie  1,  Livre  1,  p.  19,  20,  21,  22,  25. 


13 

ability  to  portray  emotions  realistically.  He  was  absorbed  so  en- 
tirely in  his  book  world  that  he  longed  to  get  away  by  himself  from 
all  material  surroundings  and  live  in  the  world  of  his  imagination. 
During  the  years  of  his  apprenticeship  his  childish  gentleness  and 
sensitiveness  passed  away  making  place  for  some  of  the  traits  which, 
developed  arid  acted  on  later,  classify  him  as  a Romanticist.  In  the 
following  words  he  gives  evidence  of  these  romantic  elements. 

J’atteignis  ainsi  ma  seizieme  annee,  inquiet , mecontent  de 
tout  et  de  moi , sans  gout  de  mon  etat,  sans  plaisirs  de  mon  age, 
devore'  de  d^sirs  dont  j'ignorais  l'objet,  pleurant  sans  sujet  de 
larnes,  soupirant  sans  savoir  de  quoi , enfin  caressant  tendrement 

« A 

mes  chimeres  faute  de  rien  voir  autour  de  moi  qui  les  valut.^-^ 

Every  Sunday  evening  Rousseau  and  his  companions  used  to 
take  walks  outside  the  city  walls.  The  gates  closed  at  a certain 
time  in  the  evening.  Twice  Rousseau  was  locked  out  and  forced  to 
spend  the  night  outside  the  city.  On  his  return  home  next  morning 
he  was  cruelly  treated  by  his  master,  who  threatened  to  punish  him 
even  more  severely  should  the  event  take  place  a third  time.  When 
Jean  Jacques  was  locked  out  the  third  time,  he  spent  the  night  in 
great  anxiety  and  fear  and  when  morning  came  he  had  not  the  courage 
to  return  home  to  the  punishment  which  he  knew  awaited  him.  So, 
when  his  companions  took  the  road  to  the  city,  he  went  in  the  oppo- 
site direction,  resolved  never  to  return  to  his  master. 

Rousseau  justified  this  step  and  its  consequences  by  put- 
ting the  entire  burden  on  fate.  He  would  have  spent  a peaceful 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  page  61. 


14 


life,  would  have  been  good,  industrious,  persevering,  all  the  things 
which  he  was  not,  had  he  fallen  into  the  hands  of  a better  Master. 

Avant  de  m'abandonner  a la  fatalite  de  rna  destinee,  qu’on 
me  permette  de  tourner  un  moment  les  yeux  sur  celle  qui  m'attendait 
naturellement  si  j'etais  tombe  dans-  les  rnains  d’un  meilleur  rnaitre. 
Rien  n'etait  plus  convenable  a mon  humeur,  ni  plus  propre  a me 
rendre  heureux,  que  l’etat  tranquille  et  obscur  d'un  bon  artisan..^ 

. ..J’aurais  passe  dans  le  sein  de  rna  religion,  de  ma 
patrie,  de  ma  famille,  et  de  rnes  amis,  une  vie  paisible  et  douce, 
telle  qu'il  la  fallait  si  mon  caractere,  dans  1 1 unif orrni te,  d’un 
travail  de  mon  gout  et  d'une  societe  selon  mon  coeur. 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  1,  p.  64,  65 


/ 


15 


Chapter  IV 

YOUTH  AND  WANDERINGS  * 

The  grief  and  anxiety  which  Jean  Jacques  experienced  as 
he  saw  the  gates  closing  gave  way  to  happiness  and  content  as  he 
went  on  his  way,  feeling  himself  far  from  the  dreaded  master.  Now 
he  was  master  of  himself,  free  to  wander  where  he  wished* 

Libre  et  maftre  de  moi-meme,  je  croyais  pouvoir  tout 
faire,  atteindre  a tout:  . . . J 1 entraisjavec  securite'  dans  la..  vaste 
espace  du  monde ; mon  merite  allait  le  remplir,  a chaque  pas  j'allais 
trouver  des  festins,  des  tresors,  des  aventures,  des  amis  prets  a 
me  servir  . . . 

Rousseau  was  in  his  element  here*  Many  of  his  romantic 
traits  were  having  full  play  in  his  imagination  and  were  growing 
and  ripening  with  each  step^ preparing  for  a day  when  they  should 
burst  forth  in  definite  form. 

For  several  days  he  wandered  about  aimlessly,  begging 
meals  here  and  there  from  the  peasants.  He  finally  came  to  a little 
village,  Confignon,  near  Geneva.  There  he  met  M.  de  Pontverre,  a 
priest,  who  took  him  in  and  kept  him  over  night.  Rousseau  was 
greatly  influenced  by  this  priest,  who  set  out  to  convert  him.  Be- 
fore the  evening  was  over  this  boy,  who  had  been  brought  up  on  pro- 
doctrineSj 

testant^ signified  his  willingness  to  adopt  the  Catholic  religion. 

As  regards  this  sudden  change  J.  Jacques  says,nM.  de  Pontverre  was 
so  splendid  a host  that  I could  not  oppose  him.“ 

Whether  his  action  was  due  to  being  flattered  that  the 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  2,  p.  66. 


16 


priest  should  engage  him  in  such  deep  conversation  or  to  timidity, 
fearing  to  displease  the  priest  by  opposing  him,  we  cannot  sayj  but 
in  either  case  his  action  shows  clearly  the  beginning  of  his  insta- 
bility of  character,  his  wavering  tendencies. 

Jean  Jacques  says  he  never  really  meant  to  change  his 
religion,  that  he  only  made  a temporary  decision  to  satisfy  the  pries 
but  the  latter,  taking  advantage  of  this  opportunity  sent  him  to 
Mme . de  Warens,  a recent  convert  at  Annecy,  before  he  should  have  a 
chance  to  change  again.  On  his  arrival  at  Annecy  he  found  Mme.  de 
Warens  not  old  as  he  had  expected,  but  a charming  young  woman  of 
twenty  eight  who  received  him  very  kindly.  This  reception  by  such 
a pretty  woman  added  to  the  fact  that  she  too  was  a recent  convert, 
appealed  to  the  romantic  boy.  Whatever  doubts  and  regrets  he  had 
had,  at  changing  his  religion,  no  doubt  left  him  when  he  found  him- 
self in  her  presence.  At  any  rate  he  made  no  outward  objection  and 
at  her  suggestion,  went  to  a monastery  at  Turin  where  he  should  re- 
ceive the  training  necessary  for  becoming  a Catholic.  Once  instal- 
led in  the  monastery,  away  from  the  flattering  remarks  of  the  priest 
and  the  charming  presence  of  Mme.  de  Warens,  Rousseau  began  to  regret 
what  he  had  done.  His  stay  at  Turin  was  unhappy.  At  the  end  of 
several  months  he  was  received  into  the  Church,  after  which  he  was 
dismissed  from  the  monastery  and  again  put  out  into  the  world.  His 
first  move  was  to  secure  a position  as  servant  to  the  Comtesse  de 
Vercellis.  Here  he  was  not  happy,  complaining  that  he  was  treated  as 
an  inferior.  With  his  ideal  system  he  could  not  seem  to  understand 
why  the  Comtesse  should  never  take  him  into  her  confidence,  never 
treat  him  as  an  equal.  Soon  after  his  arrival  she  died  and  during 
the  confusion,  which  followed  in  the  household,  Rousseau  stole  a 


17 


little  ribbon  which  struck  his  fancy.  The  crime  in  itself  w as  not 
so  disgraceful  had  he  not,  upon  being  accused,  laid  the  blame  on  a 
young  servant  girl.  The  remorse  following  this  crime  was  ever  pres- 
ent in  his  mind  throughout  his  life,  the  thoughts  of  i t always  caus- 
ing great  emotion.  He  rehearsed  the  details  of  it  over  and  over  and 
like  the  incident  at  Bossey  each  time  it  assumed  greater  proportions 
He  seems  to  find  a kind  of  morbid  fascination  in  picturing  the  re- 
sults it  may  have  brought  to  the  girl.  He  speaks  of  the  great  dan- 
ger to  which  he  exposed  her. 

Qui  sait,  a sonilge,  ou  le  decouragement  de  1* innocence 


Here  he  is  creating  a dramatic  effect,  just  as  his  father 
had  done  before  him,  for  the  sake  of  arousing  his  own  emotions. 

He  next  went  into  the  service  of  the  Comte  de  Gouvon. 

In  this  household  he  was  treated  very  kindly  and  shown  every  con- 
sideration- He  was  on  the  point  of  obtaining  a settled  position  as 
secretary  and  confidential  servant  when  his  restlessness  again  as- 
serted itself  and  caused  him  to  move  on.  His  insatiable  thirst  for 
freedom  and  his  desire  for  novelty  were  upon  him  again.  In  vain  he 
tells  us  that  all  he  wished  was  to  have  a peaceful  habitation  and 
steady  occupation.  We  see  him  too  often  rebelling  against  routine 
of  any  sort  to  accept  this  statement.  He  seems  happy  only  when  free 
from  all  restraint  and  sense  of  duty.  To  be  wandering  about  care- 
free with  but  a few  francs  in  his  pocket  not  knowing  whence  his  next 
meal  would  come,  constituted  for  him  a pleasant  existence. 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  2,  p.  130. 


18 

Thoughts  of  Mm©.  de  Warens  came  to  him  at  this  time  and, 
desirous  of  seeing  her  again,  he  went  back  to  Annecy.  She  appeared 
to  be  very  glad  to  see  him  and  received  him  into  her  household.  He 
entered  into  this  new  life  with  a content  hitherto  unknown  to  him.. 

A tender  intimacy  grew  up  between  the  two.  He  used  to  call  Ivlme.  de 
Warens  Maman,  she  called  him  Petit.  He  regarded  her  as  a mother 
and  had  the  reverence  of  a son  for  her.  Theirs  was  an  ideal  rela- 
tionship says  Rousseau.  His  world  was  a world  of  ideals  and  it  was 
only  when  living  in  this  world  that  he  approached  a state  of  hap- 
piness. Life  at  Annecy  fulfilled  his  ideals  to  a certain  extent. 

He  was  happy  and  content  because  of  it.  Mme,  de  Warens  seemed  to 
care  very  much  for  him  but  at  times  she  seemed  to  gro w tired  of  his 
shiftless  ways  and  wished  that  he  would  do  something  for  himself, 
assume  some  responsibility.  With  this  in  mind  she  placed  him  in  a 
seminary  where  he  could  follow  some  definite  line  of  work.  She  was 
disappointed  in  this,  however,  for  he  was  dissatisfied  there  and  soon 
returned  to  her.  After  this  he  took  a few  music  lessons  of  a M. 
Nicoloz  but  his  lessons  soon  came  to  an  end  for  M.  Nicoloz  was  ob- 
liged to  leave  Annecy.  At  Mine,  de  Waren's  request  Rousseau  accom- 
panied him.  He  went  as  far  as  Lyons  then  abandoned  his  Master  and 
rushed  back  to  Annecy  only  to  find  that  in  his  absence  Mine,  de  War- 
ens had  gone  to  Paris  leaving  no  word  of  explanation  or  information 
concerning  her  whereabouts  in  Paris.  This  was  a sad  home-coming  for 
Rousseau.  He  spent  days  hanging  around  Annecy  in  the  hopes  of  her 
return  or  of  receiving  some  word  from  her.  In  spite  of  his  disap- 
pointment at  Ivlme.  de  Waren's  absence,  he  managed  to  enjoy  himself. 

He  was  care-free,  therefore  happy.  He  idled  his  time  awajr  by  wand- 
ering about  either  in  the  company  of  Mile.  Merceret,  the  chamber— 


U i'J 


. 


19 


maid  of  Mine,  de  Warens,  or  in  solitude,  enjoying  the  beauties  of 
Nature.  He  was  so  delighted  at  seeing  the  sun  rise  one  morning 
that,  as  he  says,  he  could  not  refrain  from  writing  about  it. 

L'aurore  un  Matin  me  parut  si  bellej  que  m'^tant  habille* 
precipitamment je  me  hatai  de  gagner  la  campagne  pour  voir  lever  le 
soleil.  Je  goutai  ce  plaisir  dans  tout  son  charme ; ...  La  terre, 
dans  sa  plus  grande  parure,  e^tait  couverte  d'  herbe  et  de  fleurs; 
les  rossignols,  presque  a la  fin  de  leur  ramage,  semblaient  se  plaire 
\ le  renforcer;  tous  les  oiseaux,  faisant  en  concert  leurs  adieux  au 
printemps,  chantaient  la  naissance  d'un  beau  jour  d'ete  . . . 

To  be  so  impressed  by  a spring  morning  as  to  be  able  to 
describe  it  in  detail  years  later  is  a sure  proof  of  a sensitive, 
romantic  nature.  It  cherishes  things  indef ini telyj whereas  the  calm 
nature,  without  ernoti on; soon  forgets,  although  it  may  have  enjoyed 
intense^  for  the  moment.  Emotion  is  the  force  which  drives  things 
into  the  memory,  causing  them  to  be  retained. 

Days  passed  and  still  no  word,  from  Mme.de  Warens.  Mile. 
Merceret  decided  to  go  home  to  her  father.  Rousseau  accompanied  her 
to  her  home  at  Fribourg  and  went  on  from  there  to  Nyon,  a short  dis- 
tance away,  where  his  father  was  located.  The  reunion,  says  Rous- 
seau was  a very  touching  one.  They  embraced  and  shed  tears  of 

(2) 

joy,  too  overcome  with  emotion  to  speak.  Rousseau's  emotion  in  this 
case  seems  to  have  been  an  outward  show  and  not  deepseated.  After 
all  these  years  of  separation  we  would  expect  to  see  him  settle 

(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  206. 

(2)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  223. 


' 


' 


20 


down  with  his  father  and  continue  the  happy  home  life  which  he  re- 
gretted having  missed* but  to  our  surprise  he  bids  his  father  good- 
bjre  the  same  day  and  with  very  little  reluctance  starts  out  on  his 
way.. 

There  was  now  no  reason  why  he  should  go  back  to  Annecy,  ! 
and  having  no  definite  place  to  go  he  wandered  about  until  he  came 
to  Lausanne..  His  funds  were  low  by  this  time,  so  he  was  forced  to  do 
something  to  earn  a living.  The  idea  of  giving  music  lessons  came 
to  him  and  he  set  out  to  do  this  although  he  knew  very  little  about 
music.-  To  carry  out  his  plans  he  assumed  the  name  of  Vaussore  and 
established  himself  at  Lausanne  as  music  teacher  and  composer.  His 
work  brought  him  in  contact  with  a certain  M.  de  Treytorens,  a great 
music  lover  who  used  to  give  concerts  at  his  home.  Rousseau  was  very 
much  impressed  by  him  and  wishing  to  please  him  promised  to  render 
one  of  his  own  compositions  at  Treytoren's  next  concert.  As  usual 
he  is  not  thinking  of  consequences  but  plunges  boldly  in  in  the  hopes 
of  gaining  favor  in  the  eyes  of  his  new  acquaintance.  It  is  onl^r  wher 
the  first  moments  of  excitement  are  over  that  he  begins  to  think  of 
the  magnitude  of  the  thing  he  has  done.  To  prepare  for  this  concert 
Rousseau  worked  fifteen  days  on  his  composition,  growing  more  uneasy 
as  the  time  for  its  execution  drew  near.  At  last  the  night  arrived 
and  as  is  to  be  expected  his  composition  was  a miserable  failure. 

Quoi  qu’oneut  pm  penser  de  mon  prltendu  talent,  l'effet 
fut  pire  que  tout  ce  qu’on  semblait  attendre.  Les  musiciens  etouf- 
faient  de  rire ; les  auditeurs  ouvraient  de  grands  yeux  et  auraient 
bien  voulu  fermer  les  oreilles.  . . J*eus  la  .Constance  d*aller  tou- 
jours  mon  train,  suant,  il  est  vrai , a grosses  gouttes,  mais  retenu 


21 


par  la  honte , nlcsant  m'enfuir  et  tout  planter  la. 


CD 


Such  is  the  trick  the  romantic  temperament  plays  on  its 
possessor,  pulling  and  drawing  him  into  precarious  situations,  then 
departing  abruptly  and  leaving  him  to  flounder  about  and  suffer  alone 
in  his  predicament.  The  possessor  of  this  temperament  lives  con- 
tinually in  the  land  of  dreams.  Unfortunately  for  hirn,  however, 
there  is  always  the  awakening.  As  regards  this  incident  of  the  con- 
cert, Rousseau  probably  pictured  himself  as  being  a wonderful  com- 
poser, dreaming  that  his  composition  would  be  successful,  that  he 
would  be  complimented  by  great  men  and  petted  by  charming  women. 

But  he  awoke,  in  the  depths  of  despair  finding  himself  not  the  com- 
plimented hero  but  the  town  fool.  Days  of  extreme  melancholy  for 
Rousseau  followed  this  humiliating  episode.  It  may  be  that  he  has 
something  of  this  in  mind  when  he  has  his  hero  in  La  NouvelleHe- 
loise  say  with  such  depth  of  feeling: 

Oh  Julie,  what  a fatal  present  from  heaven  is  an  emotional 
soul.  One  who  has  received  it  must  prepare  for  sorrow  on  earth. 

After  this  failure  his  pupils  withdrew,  and  people  shunned 
him  or  poked  fun  at  him.  He  was  without  friends  in  his  distress  and 
had  only  his  imagination  to  turn  to  for  comfort.  He  spent  hours  in 
solitude  dreaming  about  Mine,  de  Warens  and  wondering  if  he  should 
see  her  again.  Her  birthplacej  Vevey,  was  not  far  from  Lausanne,  and 
one  day  Rousseau  conceived  the  idea  of  going  there  for  consolation.. 
He  would  seek  comfort  in  inhabiting  her  country,  in  passing  the 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  229 


22 


streets  where  she  had  passed,  before  the  houses  where  she  had  lived. 
To  reach  Vevey  it  was  necessary  to  travel  for  two  or  three  days  along 
Lake  Geneva.  On  the  way  Rousseau  gave  himself  up  completely  to  the 
melancholy  which  had  been  pursuing  him  since  the  night  of  the  con- 
cert- But  it  was  a different  kind  of  melancholy;  where  it  had  been 
grief  mixed  with  bitterness,  shame  and  remorse  it  now  became  calm 
and  resigned.  In  the  former  Rousseau  suffered  keenly,  in  the  latter 
he  found  keen  enjoyment.  That  is  to  say  he  discovered  the  pleasure 
to  be  derived  from  being  miserable.  In  the  former  his  tears  came 
from  bitterness  and  despair,  in  the  latter  he  wept  for  the  sheer  joy 
of  weeping-  In  the  following  passage  we  see  Rousseau's  enjoyment 
and  love  of  the  beautiful  in  Nature.  His  ddlight,  however,  is  not 
in  the  scene  alone  but  in  the  effect  produced  by  it. 

L ''Aspect  du  lac  de  Geneve  et  de  ses  admirables  co^tes  eut 
toujours  a mes  yeux  un  attrait  particulier  que  je  ne  saurais  ex- 
pliquer,  et  qui  ne  tient  pas  seuleinent  a la  beaute1 2^  du  spectacle,  rnais 
a je  ne  sais  quoi  de  plus  interessant  qui  m'affecte  et  m' attendrit^) 

Quand  1' ardent  desir  de  cette  vie  heureuse  et  douce  qui 
me  fuit  et  pour  laquelle  jtetais  ne  vient  enflammer  mon  imagination, 
c'est  toujours  au  pays  de  Yaud,  pres  du  lac,  dans  des  campagnes 
charmantes,  qu'elle  se  fixe.  II  me  faut  absolument  un  verger  au 
bord  de  ce  lac,  et  non  pas  d'un  autre;  il  me  faut  un  ami  sur,  une 
femme  aimable,  une  vache , et  un  petit  bateau.  Je  ne  joutrai  d'un 
bonheur  parfait  sur  la  terre  que  quand  j'aurai  tout  cela. 


(1)  Confessions,  Fartie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  233 

(2)  ib.,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  234 


23 


And  again  concerning  his  return  from  Vevey  we  get  a des- 
cription of  the  effect  of  the  Lake  on  Rousseau. 

Dans  ce  voyage  de  Vevey,  je  me  livrais,  en  suivant  ce  beau 
rivage,  a la  plus  douce  melancolie:  mon  coeur  s'elancait  avec  ardeur 
a mille  felicites  innocentes;  je  m' attendri ssai s , je  soupirais  et 
pleurais  comme  un  enfant.  Combi en  de  fois,  m'arretant  pour  pleurer 
a mon  aise,  assis  sur  une  grosse  pierre,  je  me  suis  amuse  a voir 
tomber  rues  larmes  dans  l'eau. 

CD 

These  impressions  are  interesting  and  important^  for  this 
is  a scene  which  remains  longest  in  Rousseau's  memory  and  which  ap- 
pears later  in  La  Nouvelle  Heloise. 

From  Lausanne  he  went  to  Ueufchatel  where  he  again  attempt- 
ed to  teach  music.  This  time  he  was  more  successful,  for  he  was 
beginning  to  understand  music  and  have  a taste  for  it.  He  was  only 
moderately  happy  at  Neufch&tel.  As  he  says, "an  ordinary  man  would 
have  been  contented,  but  my  restless  heart  demanded  other  things." 

He  hated  to  be  hemmed  in  in  the  city  and  longed  to  get  into  the  open 
country  where  he  could  dream  at  leisure. 

Les  dimanches  et  les  jours  ou  j'etais  libre,  j'allais 
courir  les  campagnes  et  les  bois  des  environs,  toujours  errant,  r£- 
vant,  soupirant;  et  quand  j'etais  une  fois  sorti  de  la  ville,  je 
n'y  rentrais  plus  que  le  soir.^g) 

One  evening  on  returning  from  one  of  his  walks,  Rousseau 
stopped  to  rest  at  a little  inn  at  Boudry.  There  he  met  an  old  man 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  23.4 

(2)  ib.,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  236 


24 


in  Greek  costume,  w ho  told  a story  to  the  effect  that  he  was  travel- 
ing through  Europe  collecting  money  for  the  restoration  of  the  Holy 
Sepulchre Anything  out  of  the  ordinary  always  appealed  to  Rous- 
seau, and  this  was  not  without  its  appeal.  He  was  immediately  drawn 
toward  this  old  man.  The  two  ate  dinner  together  and  became  friends 
Rousseau  was  so  impressed  with  the  idea  of  restoring  the  Holy  Se- 
pulchre that  he  volunteered  his  services  as  secretary  and  prepared 
to  leave  Neufchatel.  Here  again  is  a proof  of  Rousseau's  impetuous 
nature.  He  is  too  ready  to  take  everyone  at  his  word  and  becomes 
so  filled  with  enthusiasm  for  future  possibilities  that  he  complete- 
ly forgets  the  present* 

The  two  started  off  on  their  mission,  traveling  through 
Fribourg,  Berne  and  Soleure.  The  ambition  to  reach  Jerusalem  was 
never  realized,  for  at  Soleure  Rousseau's  companion  was  arrested  for 
fraud.  The  French  ambassador  realizing  that  Rousseau  had  been  a tool, 
pardoned  him  and  offered  to  start  him  on  the  right  path  by  sending 
him  to  Paris.  There  he  was  to  enter  the  service  of  one  of  the  am- 
bassador's friends*  Rousseau  accepted  immediately  for  it  had  long 
been  his  desire  to  see  Paris,  the  city  of  his  dreams  where  all  am- 
bitions are  realized  and  a state  of  happiness  attained. 

He  set  out  enthusiastically  for  Paris  but  on  arriving 
there  he  was  doomed  to  disappointment*  Here  again  the  ideal  turned 
suddenly  into  the  real.  In  the  following  we  get  his  first  impres- 
sion of  Paris  not  as  his  dream  city  but  as  a disagreeable  reality* 

En  entrant  par  le  faubourg  Saint-Marc eau,  je  ne  vis  que 
de  petites  rues  sales  et  puantes,  de  vilaines  Maisons  Noires,  1'air 
de  la  mal-proprete7,  de  la  pauvrete^  des  mendiantes,  des  charretiers, 


. 


' 


. 

, 


' 


25 


des  ravaudeuses,  des  crieuses  de  tisane  et  de  vieux  chapeaux.  Tout 
cela  me  frappa  d’abord  a tel  point,  que  tout  ce  que  j'ai  vu  depuis 
\ Paris  de  magnificence  r^ele  n' a pu  detruire  cette  premiere  impres- 
s i on . ^ -j  ^ 

He  was  neither  pleased  with  his  surroundings  at  Paris 
nor  his  occupation;  accordingly,  as  we  should  expect  from  his  tem- 
perament, he  left  immediately. 

He  had  learned  that  Mme . de  Warens  was  no  longer  living 
at  Paris.  Thinking  she  had  gone  back  to  Annecy,  Rousseau  decided 
to  go  there  to  join  her.  He  started  out  on  this  journey  on  foot. 

He  had  very  little  money  and  would  have  to  endure  what  to  the  aver- 
age man  would  be  the  greatest  hardships;  to  Rousseau,  however,  these 
hardships  were  merely  pleasant  adventures.  He  went  along  from  day 
to  day  free  from  worry  or  care.  It  mattered  not  to  him  how  long 
the  journey  was,  provided  he  eventually  reached  Annecy.  In  the 
meantime  he  would  enjoy  nature  and  entertain  himself  by  his  thoughts 
and  dreams  which  he  says  were  abundant  when  he  was  in  solitude. 

r t / 

Jamais  je  nfai  tant  pense,  tant  existe  tant  vecu,  tant 
et4  moi , si  j‘ose  ainsi  dire,  que  dans  ces  voyages  que  j’ai  faits 
seul  et  a pied.  . .La  vue  de  la  campagne,  la  succession  des  as- 
pects agreables,  le  grand  air,  la  bonne  sante  que  je  gagne  en  mar- 
chant,  . . . 1 1 eloignement  de  tout  ce  qui  me  fait  sentir  ma  de— 
pendance  de  tout  ce  qui  me  rappelle  a ma  situation,  tout  cela  de- 
gage mon  anie,  me  donne  une  plus  grande  audace  de  penser,  me  jette 
en  quelque  sorte  dans  l'immensite  des  etres  pour  les  combiner,  les 


(1)  Confessions,  Partiel,  Livre  4,  p.  245. 


■ 


■ . 


. 


26 


One  day  as  Rousseau  was  walking  along  he  lost  his  way  and 


wandered  about  for  hours  until  he  came  to  a peasant's  hut..  He  en- 
tered and  asked  for  food.  The  peasant  offered  him  nothing  but  coarse 
bread  and  milk,  but  later,  becoming  interested  in  him  and  convinced 
that  he  was  not  spying,  went  to  the  cellar  and  brought  out  meat, 
wine  and  other  good  foods.  This  surprised  Rousseau,  who  upon  ques- 
tioning the  peasant  learned  that  he  pretended  poverty  and  kept  his 
food  hidden  to  escape  paying  duties  and  taxes  on  it.  It  was  to  his 
advantage  to  be  dying  of  hunger.  Rousseau  was  greatly  impressed  by 
this  episode.  This  man,  sensitive  to  his  surroundings,  did  not  fail 
to  respond  here.  He  put  himself  wholly  in  the  position  of  the  peas- 
ant , suffering  and  revolting  as  much  as  the  latter^  Rousseau  was 
struck  forcibly  by  the  umyjustness  of  this  treatment  and  as  he  went 
on  his  way  again  he  meditated  and  pondered  over  the  question  of  this 
injustice, — Why  should  the  peasant  be  mistreated  and  kept  in  con- 
stant fear  of  being  punished?  The  thoughts  of  this  burdened  the 
liberty-loving  Rousseau.  The  following  shows  the  impression  it  made 
on  him, — such  a strong  impression  that  it  remained  alive  in  his  mem- 
ory for  years  and  finally  took  form  in  Les  Discourg.  sui  I'inegalite. 

Ce  fut  la  le  germe  de  cette  haine  inextinguible  qui  se 
developpa  depuis  dans  mon  coeur  contre  les  vexations  qu'eprouve  le 
Sialheureux  peuple  et  contre  les  oppresseurs.  Cet  homme,  quoique 
ais£,  n’osait  manger  le  pain  qu'il  avait  gagne  a la  sueur  de  son 
front,  et  ne  pouvait  eviter  sa  ruine , qu'en  montrant  la  rneme  ndsere 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  250 


27 


qui  rlgnait  autour  de  lui . Je  sortis  de  la  maison  . . . deplorant 
le  sort  de  ces  belles  contrees  a qui  la  nature  n'a  prodigue  ses  dons 
que  pour  en  faire  la  proie  des  barbares  publicains . 

Upon  reaching  Annecy  he  found  that  Lime,  de  Warens  had 
moved,  to  Chamb^ry.  Rousseau  had  scarcely  any  money  left  but  was  de- 
termined to  reach  Chamb^ry.  Before  he  arrived  there  his  money  gave 
out  entirely  and  he  was  forced  to  spend  his  nights  in  the  open.  But 
instead  of  complaining  about  this  he  says  it  is  his  most  beautiful 
adventure..  He  gives  us  a striking  description  of  one  night  thus 
spent  and  we  see  that  he  is.  not  exaggerating  when  he  tells  us  he 
really  enjoyed  this  life  of  a vagabond. 

Je  me  souviens  meme  d* avoir  passe  une  nuit  delicieuse 
hors  de  la  ville.  Des  jardins  eleves  en  terrasse  bordaient  le  chem- 
j_n  du  cote  oppose.  II  avait  fait  trks-chand  ce  jour- la,  la  soiree 
etait  charmante ; la  rosle  humectait  lrherbe  fletrie;  point  de  vent, 
une  nuit  tranquille;  l'air  etait  frais  sans  etre  froid;  le  soleil, 
aprls  son  coucher,  avait  laisse  dans  le  ciel  des  vapeurs  rouges 
dont  la  reflexion  rendait  l'eau  couleur  de  rose;  les  arbres  des 
terrasses  etaient  charges  de  rossigno]s  qui  se  repondaient  de  l’un 
a 1*  autre,  je  me  promenais  dans  une  sorte  d’extase,  livrant  rnes  sens 
et  mon  cosur  a la  jouissance  de  tout  cela  . . . absorbe7  dans  ma 

douce  reverie,  je  prolongeai  fort  avant  dans  la  nuit  ma  promenade, 

/ 

sans  m'apercevoir  que  j'etais  las  . . . Je  me  couchai  voluptueuse- 
ment  sur  la  tablette  d’une  esp^ce  de  niche  ou  de  fausse  porte  enfonci  s 
dans  un  mur  de  terrasse;  le  ciel  de  mon  lit  etait  forme  par  les  tetes 
des  arbres;  un  rossignol  etait  precisement  au-dessus  de  moi : Je 


(1)  Confessions,  Fartie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  253. 


28 


ra'endormis  a son  chant;  mon  sommeil  fut  doux,  mon  r4veil  le  fut 
davantage.  II  etait  grand  jour:  Ivies  yeux,  en  s'ouvrant,  virent 

l'eau,  la  verdure,  un  paysage  admirable.  . , J'etais  de  si  bonne 

humeur,  que  j'allais  chantant  tout  le  long  du  chemin.  ^ 

In  the  following  we  get  a description  which  shows  another 
romantic  trait, — not  only  the  love  of  nautre  but  the  love  of  the 
rugged  in  nature. 

La  vie  ambulant  est  celle  qu'il  me.  faut.  Faire  route  a 
pied  par  un  beau  temps,  dans  un  beau  pays,  sans  etre  pressd,  et 
avoir  pour  terme  de  ma  course  un  ©bjet  agreable ; voila  de  toutes  les 
manilres  de  vivre  celle  qui  est  le  plus  de  mon  gout.  Jamais  pays 
de  plaine , quelque  beau  qu'il  fut,  ne  parut  tel  a mes  yeux.  II  me 

faut  des  torrents,  des  rochers,  des  sapins,  des  bois  noirs,  des 

montagnes,  des  chemins  raboteux  a monter  et  a descendre,  des  preci- 
pices a mes  cotes  qui  me  fassent  bien  peur.^g) 

(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  260 

(2)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  4,  p.  266. 


Chapter  V 

LIFE  AT  CHAMBERY  AND  CHARMETTES  (1732-1741). 


After  many  days  of  wandering  he  finally  arrived  at  Cham- 
bery and  was  received  by  Mme . de  Warens,  who  was  delighted  to  see 
him  again.  Rousseau's  restless  desires  were  satisfied  for  a time, 
and  he  settled  down  into  a calm,  peaceful  life  with  Mme.  de  Warens, 
which  lasted  eight  or  nine  years.  During  this  time  he  was  clerk  of 
the  surveys,  and  music  teacher.  At  the  beginning  of  his  stay  an 
incident  occurred  which  affected  his  whole  life  at  Chambery,  an  in- 
cident not  important  in  Itself  but  as  it  involves  a later  consider- 
ation of  a similar  incident  in  La  Nouvelle  Heloise.  Mme.  de  Warens 
had  living  at  her  home  a young  botanist  named  Claud  Anet,  with  whom 
she  had  the  most  intimate  relations.  She  offered  Rousseau  the  same 
privileges  which  he  accepted.  The  strange  thing  to  be  noticed  here 
is  that  she  continued  in  her  former  manner  with  Claude  Anet  without 
provoking  the  least  sign  of  jealousy  in  Rousseau^  In  fact  he  goes 
into  detail  in  a very  frank  way  about  the  life  of  these  three  people. 
He  tells  how  they  all  lived  happily  under  one  roof  without  thinking 
of  being  jealous.  All  their  wishes,  cares  and  hearts  were  in  com- 
mon 

About  the  third  year  of  his  stay  at  Chambery  he  was  tem- 
porarily blinded  by  an  accident  and  had  a serious  illness  because 
of  it-  Mme.  de  Warens  nursed  him  carefully  and  brought  him  safely 
through  it  but  he  was  only  a shadow  of  his  former  self,  weak;,  ner- 
vous and  melancholy.  The  old  house  in  which  they  lived  was  a gloomy 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  5,  p.  312 


30 


sort  and  it  had  its  effect  on  the  nervous,  irritable  invalid.  Ke 
didn’t  gain  strength  as  he  should  and  was  becoming  more  and  more 
melancholy.  The  sight  of  the  city  oppressed  him  and  he  yearned  to 
be  out  in  the  country.  Mme . de  Warens,  to  humor  him  rented  a beauti- 
ful country  place  just  outside  the  city.  They  took  possession  of 
this  place,  known  as  Les  Charmettes,  in  the  fall  of  1736.  Rousseau 
was  delighted  as  soon  as  he  saw  it.  His  sadness  passed  away  in  an 
instant  and  his  old  care-free,  lighthearted  spirit  returned  and  with 
it  his  sensitiveness  to  beauty  which  had  been  repressed  for  some 
time.  In  speaking  of  "Les  Charmettes"  he  says — 

J'etais  transport^  le  premier  jour  que  nous  y couchames. 

0 Mamanl  dis-je  a cette  chere  amie  en  l'embrassant  et  l’inondant  de 
larmes  d' attendrissement  et  de  joie,  ce  sejour  est  celui  de  bonheur 
et  de  cl*  innocence  . 

Ici  commence  le  court  bonheur  de  me  vie;  ici  viennent  les 
paisibles  mais  rapides  moments  qui  m’ ont  donne  le  droit  de  dire  que 
jl 2ai  vecu.  . . . Je  me  levais  avec  le  soleil,  et  j'etais  heureux; 
je  me  promenais  et  j’etais  heureux;  Je  voyais  Maman  et  j’etais 
heureux;  ...  Je  parcourais  les  bois,  les  coteaux,  j’errais  dans 
les  vallons,  je  lisais,  j'etais  oisif,  je  travaillais  au  jardin,  je 
cueillais  les  fruits  . . . et  le  bonheur  me  suiivait  part out., 

Here  hex  had  nature,  freedom,  idleness,  everything  that 
suited  his  disposition.  To  use  his  own  words,  "I  did  what  I wished, 

1 was  what  I wanted  to  be." 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  1,  Livre  5,  p.  3.4S 

(2)  ib.,  Partie  1,  Livre  6,  p.  351 


31 


This  happy  and  care  free  existence  was  unexpectedly  inter- 
rupted. Rousseau  had  a sudden  attack  of  what  he  diagnosed  as  heart 
trouble.  Upon  being  persuaded  by  Mine,  de  Warens,  he  went  to  Mont- 
pellier for  a consultation.  In  a short  time  he  felt  much  improved 
and  hastened  back  to  Les  Charmettes  hoping  to  take  up  his  happy  life 
where  he  had  left  it,  but  to  his  surprise  and  chagrin  he  found  that 
in  his  absence  Lime,  de  Warens  had  filled  his  place  with  a young  man 
named  Wintzenried.  She  pretended  to  be  glad  to  have  Rousseau  back 
home  again,  but  he  detected  a change  in  her  manner,  a coldness  and 
indifference  formerly  foreign  to  her..  When  she  proposed  another 
three-fold  relationship  he  declined.  He  tried  to.  stay  on  at  Les 
Charmettes;  tried  to  bury  his  grief  in  his  books  and  in  solitude; 
but  the  presence  of  Wintzenried  and  the  changed  attitude  of  Lime,  de 
Warens  were  more  than  he  could  endure  and  he  felt  forced  to  leave. 

For  a year  he  tutored  in  a private  household  then  returned  to  Les 
Charmettes,  hoping  that  Lime  de  Waren's  infatuation  for  Wintzenried 
would  have  worn  off  and  that  he,  Rousseau,  would  be  in  favor  again. 
Such  was  not  the  case  and  after  a short  period  of  grief,  Rousseau  set 
out  for  Paris. 

In  this  circumstance  Rousseau  shows  another  strange  trait 
of  character.  Without  doubt  he  suffered  much  because  of  this  break 
with  Lime,  de  Warens,  but  his  sorrow,  although  extreme,  was  only  mo- 
mentary. After  the  break  with  her  he  indulged  in  violent  spells  of 
grief  and  despair  followed  by  melancholy  then  suddenly  without  warn- 
ing he  rises  up,  shakes  the  burden  off  his  shoulders  and  as  though 
nothing  had  happened,  starts  for  Paris,  making  plans  and  dreaming 
dreams  for  the  future. 


32 


Chapter  VI 
PARIS  (1741-1756) . 

In  1741  Rousseau  reached  Paris  with  little  money  in  his 
pocket  but  full  of  ambition  and  dreams  of  success..  This  success  he 
hoped  to  obtain  t hrough  Narcisse,  a comedy,  and  through  a new  sys- 
tem of  musical  notation.  Ke  went  to  live  in  Hotel  St.  Quentin  in 
Paris-  It  was  located  in  an  undesirable  part  of  the  city  and  was 
very  unattractive  in  itself,  but  none  of  this  could  affect  Rousseau 
now  for  he.  was  too  busy  living  in  the  future,  in  his  imagination,  to 
be  concerned  with  the  present.  Everjrthing  depended  on  his  new  sys- 
tem of  music,  the  success  of  which  he  did  not  doubt  for  an  instant. 

It  was,  however,  a complete  failure.  Rousseau  was  disappointed  over 
the  outcome  of  it,  but  never  doubted  his  own  ability.  He  said,  by 
way  of  consoling  himself,  that  the  decision  on  it  was  just  because  of 
the  fact  that  those  who  passed  judgment  didn't  know  enough  about 
music  to  appreciate  anything  of  value.  Rousseau's  temperament  and 
care-free  attitude,  aided  by  his  egotism,  helped  him  over  many  dis- 
appointments. As  we  have  said,  he  is  overcome  for  an  instant  but 
never  fails  to  rise  again  and  to  attempt  with  zeal  some  new  activity. 
The  remarkable  thing  is  that  he  never  seems  to  weary  or  be  discour- 
aged over  his  past  failures;  he  never  feels  that  they  are  a result  of 
his  inability  but  rather  that  they  are  brought  about  by  fate. 

About  the  time  his  system  of  musical  notation  failed,  Rous- 
seau- met  a Jesuit  named  Castel  who  advised  him  to  try  his  success 
with  women.  Castel  explained  how  influential  they  were  and  how  much 
could  be  gained  by  courting  their  favor. 


33 


Rousseau  fell  in  with  this  plan  and  presented  letters  of 
introduction  to  three  influential  ladies  who  succeeded  in  getting 
for  him  a position  as  secretary  to  the  Comte  de  Montaigu  in  Venice- 
As  usual  Rousseau  did  not  find  the  position  to  his  liking.  He  could 
not  get  along  with  the  Comte,  who  was  a man  of  quick  temper  arid  dis- 
agreeable disposition  and  who  refused  to  treat  Rousseau  as  an  equal. 
He  very  soon  abandoned  this  position  and  went  back  to  Paris  full  of 
disgust  for  the  nobility  and  resentment  toward  them.  On  his  return 
to  Paris  he  found  that  the  Hotel  St.  Quentin  had  fallen  into  the 
hands  of  new  people,  who  were  very  rough  and  vulgar  and  offended 
Rousseau's  aesthetic  sensibilities.  Only  one  among  them  showed  any 
refinement;  this  was  the  maid  of  the  new  landlady,  Therese  Le  Vas— 
seur-  She  stood  out  in  contrast  to  the  others  and  Rousseau  was  im- 
mediately drawn  to  her.  He  had  had  several  affairs  since  his  break 
with  Mine . de  Warens  b.ut  they  were  affairs  only.  Not  since  his  de- 
parture from  Les  Charmettes  had  he  felt  toward  any  woman  as  he  had 
toward  Mme . de  Warens.  He  now  felt  the  need  of  just  such  a relation- 
ship and  thought  he  saw  in  Therese  his  need  fulfilled. ^ He  pick- 
ed her  out  because  she  was  quiet,  refined,  ignorant  and  inferior  to 
him-  He  wished  some  one  who  would  depend  on  him  entirely,  follow 
out  his  wishes  to  the  letter,  care  for  him  and  be  sensitive  enough 
to  reflect  his  moods.  He  found  just  these  things  in  Therese.  She 
was  very  ignorant,  never  being  able  to  tell  the  months  of  the  year  or 
even  to  tell  time  by  the  clock.  In  talking  she  always  used  the  wrong 
words;  but  what  did  that  matter  if  she  could  sit  and  weep  with  him 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  2,  Livre  7,  p.  90 


34 


over  the  reading  of  some  mournful  selection  or  go  into  ecstasy  with 
him  over  the  contemplation  of  a beautiful  landscape.  Their  emotional 
natures  were  in  harmony. 

Rousseau  never  married  her  and  never  led  her  to  expect  that 
he  would  marry  her..  In  fact  in  making  the  bargain  he  told  her  frank- 
ly what  their  relationship  was  to  be. 

Je  lui  declarai  d'avance  que  je  ne  1 ‘ abandonnerai s ni  ne  l’lpou- 
serais  jamais. ^ 

That  he  should  refuse  to  marry  Therese  when  he  had  the  intention  of 
living  with  her  always  and  being  loyal  to  her,  is  strange;  but  it 
fits  in  with  all  his  other  bizarre  notions.  He  was  happy  with  her* 
She  gratified  his  desires  and  supplied  domestic  peace,  which  was  all 
that  was  essential  to  him.  No  marriage  was  needed  for  that.  To 
live  with  an  inferior  is  one  thing,  to  marry  her  is  another.  Prob- 
ably had  he  married  her  he  would  have  noticed  her  faults  and  would 
have  complained  of  her  ignorance.  He  accepted  from  a mistress  what 
he  might  have  found  disgusting  in  a wife.  Then  too  the  problem  of 
responsibility  very  likely  arose  in  his  mind.  Marriage  was  binding 
and  Rousseau  in  no  way  wished  to  be  bound  not  even  to  a woman  he 
loved.  Closely  allied  to  this  shirking  of  responsibility  was  another 
much  more  serious.  Rousseau  tells  us  that,  in  all,  five  children 
were  born  of  this  union  and  that  one  by  one  they  v/ere  disposed  of  in 
an  orphan  asylum.  With  the  birth  of  the  first  child  Rousseau  per- 


suaded Therese  that  it  was  the  thing  to  do  to  save  her  honor. 


(2) 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  2,  Livre  7,  p.  89 

(2)  ib.,  Partie  2,  Livre  7,  p.  111. 


. 


. 


35 


Later  he  justified  his  act  by  saying, — 

. . En  livrant  ines  enfants  a l'education  publique,  faute  de  pouvoir 
qes  elever  moi-mene,  en  les  destinant  a devenir  ouvriers  et  paysans, 
plutot  qu' aventuriers  et  coureurs  de  fortunes,  je  crus  faire  un  acte 
de  citoyen  et  de  p^re ; et  je  me  regardai  comme  un  rnembre  de  la  r£- 
publique  de  Platon. 

/ 

Such  was  the  author  of  the  Erni 1 e , that  well  known  treatise 
on  education,  in  which  Rousseau,  the  unnatural  father  in  reality, 
idealizes  a situation  in  which  the  child  is  brought  up  altogether 
under  the  guidance  of  its  parents.  This  gives  added  proof  that  Rous- 
seau lived  completely  in  the  imagination.  He  was  continually  pic- 
turing to  himself  what  he  would  like  to  be  and  how  he  would  act  in 
certain  circumstances..  In  his  imagination  he  was  a success  as  a man, 
lover  and  father;  in  reality  he  was  a miserable  failure.  In  the 


Emile  some  of  Rousseau's  own  early  influences  take  form.  He  is  un- 
doubtedly thinking  of  his  own  haphazard  education,  his  early  novel 
reading  and  the  harmful  knowledge  derived  from  it  when  he  says,  "Ed- 
ucation should  be  purely  negative  from  the  j^ears  of  five  to  twelve." 
Nothing  should  be  given  the  child  which  is  bejrond  his  comprehension. 
The  period  of  innocent  childhood  should  be  prolonged  and  not  pushed 
into  manhood  before  the  proper  time. 

From  this  he  goes  into  his  pet  theory  that  it  is  inherent 
in  the  child  to  be  good  and  that  the  corruption  of  society  does  him 
harm.  Therefore  he  must  be  carafully  educated  to  ward  off  these  evil 
influences..  The  Emile  is  usually  considered  as  an  intellectual  piece 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  2,  Livre  8,  p.  133. 


36 


of  work,  being  a product  of  the  reason  only.  But  after  making  a 
careful  study  of  Rousseau's  life  we  can  show  that  the  points  he 
makes  in  the  Smile  are  simply  the  results  of  some  past  experience 
accompanied  by  emotion.  This  work  is  also  subjective,  Rousseau 
being  felt  throughout.  We  therefore  include  it  in  our  discussion 
of  the  romantic.  His  theory  that  all  nature  is  good,  that  it  is  in- 
herent in  us  to  be  good  until  we  are  polluted  by  ci vilization,  is  an- 
other romantic  touch.  By  this  he  implies  that  nature  is  God,  civil- 
ization is  man  and  as  man  becomes  more  civilized  he  gets  farther 
from  God. 

It  was  in  the  summer  of  1749  that  an  incident  occurred 
which  suddenly  made  Rousseau  famous*.  His  friend  Diderot  had  been 
publishing  certain  of  his  opinions  on  matters  of  morals  and  religi- 
on, and  for  this  reason  he  was  arrested  and  confined  in  the  chateau 
at  Vincennes.  Friends  were  permitted  to  visit  him  and  Rousseau  was 
one  of  these.  He  used  to  go  almost  dail3^  carrying  with  him  parts 
of  unfinished  works  for  Diderot  to  read.  One  day  as  he  was  on  his  , 
way  to  Vincennes  he  happened  to  read  in  the  Me r cure  de  France  an  an- 
nouncement of  the  question  proposed  for  a prize  essay  by  the  Academy 
of  Dijon..  The  influence  of  the  Progress  of  the  Arts  and  Sciences 
upon  Morality.  A sudden  inspiration  came  to  him.  One  idea  after  an- 
other  took  form  and  almost  overwhelmed  him.  He  was  so  overcome  with 
emotion  that  he  had  to  sit  down  under  a tree  to  recover.  He  says 
he  passed  a half  hour  in  such  agitation,  that  without  realizing  that 
he  was  weeping,  he  had  moistened  the  whole  front  of  his  vest  with 
tears*  He  hurried  on  to  Vincennes  and  told  Diderot  what  had  happen- 
ed. The  latter  urged  him  to  write  on  the  subject.  Rousseau  took 
the  side  that  society  was  becoming  corrupt  through  the  Arts  and 


37 


Sciences,  or  to  make  it  more  general,  through  civilization.  He  at- 
tacked this  subject  with  much  sincerity  and  great  depth  of  feeling. 
All  his  pent  up  emotions  were  for  the  first  time  finding  an  outlet 

in  real  expressions.  Intoxicated  with  this  inspiration  he  went  deep- 

er and  deeper  into  the  subject  making  somewhat  rash  statements,  car- 
rying his  views  to  extremes,  But  it  was  this  very  boldness  and  orig- 
inality in  his  writings  which  attracted  the  attention  of  the  Dijon 
Academy  to  him,  won  for  him  the  prize  and  made  him  one  of  the  most 
popular  men  in  Paris-  Rousseau'  s next  work  was  his  Pi  scours  sur 

1 'infealit^  the  theme  of  which  is  an  enlargement  of  that  of  his  first 

Pi  scours . Once  having  started  pouring  out  his  thoughts  he  could  not 
repress  them  and  they  continued  to  flow  gaining  force  as  they  went. 
■Very  likely  as  he  wrote,  thoughts  of  past  events,  which  had  impress- 
ed him,  came  to  an<^  demanded  expression;  his  servitude  with 
Abel  Ducommum,  his  being  treated  as  an  inferior  at  the  home  of  the 
comtesse  de  Vercellis,  his  misery  in  the  service  of  the  comte  de 
Montaigu,  and  especially  the  impressions  which  he  received  the  day 
the  peasant  told  him  how  the  poor  suffered  at  the  hands  of  those 
higher  up. 

In  this  Pi  scours  he  is  still  complaining  against  civili- 
zation but  his  remarks  are  directed  to  those  high  up  in  the  society, 
which  constitutes  civilization.  In  this  work  he  starts  by  giving 
a detailed  account  of  primitive  man.  In  the  age  of  primitive  man 
there  did  not  exist  any  inequality.  All  enjoyed  and  partook  of  com- 
mon pleasures.  Rousseau  says  that  wrong  began  with  private  property; 
gradually  one  individual  acquired  more  than  his  fellows  and  with  this 
acquisition  came  power.  From  this,  civilization  built  up  little  by 


\ 


38 


little  bringing  with  it  unhappiness  and  useless  strivings.  This 
would  never  have  happened  could  man  have  remained  in  his  primitive 
state.  As  he  was  writing  this  he  became  so  imbued  with  the  ideas 
that  he  was  setting  forth  that  in  his  imagination  he  began  to  live  ! 
in  the  past  with  primitive  man  and  to  enjoy  his  peaceful  existence. 
These  imaginary  pictures  of  peace  aroused  in  him  an  even  greater 
hatred  of  the  city  than  he  had  had  before,  and  he  conceived  the  Idea 
of  publicly  denouncing  society  and  living  the  simple  life;  to  con- 
form his  life  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  things  he  had  been  preach- 
ing. Kis  first  step  was  to  give  up  fancy  dress  discard  his  watch, 
lay  aside  his  fine  linen  and  in  their  place  to  put  on  very  simple 
attire  and  live  simply.  He  was  not  able  to  do  this  in  Paris,  where 
he  was  the  center  of  attraction,  so  he  moved  from  there  to  a place 

near  Montmorency  in  a pretty  little  cottage  known  as  L'Hermitage, 

/ 

which  was  given  him  by  an  old  friend,  Lime.  d’Epinay.  He  w as  over- 
joyed to  be  once  more  in  the  quiet  of  the  county  and  away  from  the 
mad  rush  and  corruption  of  the  city. 


39 


Chapter  VII 

L ‘HERMITAGE  AND  MONT  LOUIS  (1756-1762)  . 

Rousseau  took  up  his  abode  at  L‘Hermitage  in  April  1756. 
Although  it  was  quite  cold,  he  says  the  violets  and  spring  flowers 
were  beginning  to  bloom  and  the  sight  of  them  filled  him  with  peace 
and  calm.  He  spent  the  first  days  exploring  his  surroundings  and 
speaks  of  the  delight  they  brought  him. 

Enfin  tous  mes  voeux  sont  accompli s. Mon  premier  soin  fut 
de  me  IDvrer  a 1* impression  des  objets  champetres  dont  j'etais  en- 
tour£.  . . . il  ^i»eut  pas  un  sentier,  pas  un  taillis,  pas  un  bos- 
quet, pas  un  reduit  autour  de  ma  demeure,  que  je  n’eusse  parcouru.. . ^ 

He  tells  us  that  from  time  to  time  he  had  visited  the 
country  homes  of  the  rich;but  these  places  failed  to  appeal  to  him  or 
to  satisfjr  him.  The  nature  was  a cultivated  nature,  too  keenly  did 
he  feel  the  hand  of  man  in  the  symmetrical,  formal  gardens.  He  long- 
ed to  be  surrounded  by  rugged  nature  in  some  lonely  spot  where  only 
the  hand  of  God  could  be  felt.  To  the  former  he  reacted  to  a great 
extent,  not  being  able  to  be  inspired  by  it  or  even  to  enjoy  it;  in 
the  latter  the  irregular,  rugged  aspects  of  nature  suited  his  moods 
and  inspired  him  with  romantic  thoughts.  A classicist  might  be  in- 
spired in  a symmetrical,  garden,  a romanticist  never.  I1 Hermitage 
was  just  the  place  Rousseau  needed  as  a stimulus  to  his  romantic 
traits.  He  says  of  it: 

Plus  j ‘examinais  cette  charmante  retraite  plus  je  la  sen- 


(1)  Confessions,  Partie  2,  Livre  9,  p.  207 


' 


r 


' 


. 


. 

. 

40 

tais  faite  pour  moi.  Ce  lieu^ solitaire  plutot  que  sauvage,  me  trans- 
portait  en  idee  au  bout  du  monde . II  avait  de  ces  beautes  touchantes 
qu'on  ne  ttrouve  gu&re  aupres  des  villes.^-jj  . . 

He  benefited  by  this  life  both  physically  and  mentally. 

He  grew  stronger  in  body,  calmer  in  mind.  Away  from  the  city  he  be- 
gan to  lose  the  bitterness  he  had  felt  for  society;  and  for  weeks 
his  life  was  one  of  calmness  and  contentment.  His  days  were  spent 
rambling  about  through  the  woods,  sometimes  alone,  sometimes  with 
Therese  who  continued  to  reflect  his  moods.  Happiness  and  content 
seemed,  however,  to  be  always  shorWlived  for  Rousseau.  A disappoint 
ment  always  followed  his  periods  of  happiness.  He  was  never  able  to 
steer  a middle  course,  he  was  either  on  the  heights  or  in  the  depths. 
His  trouble  at  l^Hermitage  came  in  the  person  of  Mme . Le  Vasseur, 
mother  of  Therese  who,  while  accepting  the  hospitality  of  Rousseau 
and  pretending  friendship  for  him,  was  doing  all  in  her  power  to 
turn  her  daughter  against  him.  At  this  time  Rousseau  began  to  de- 
tect a change  in  Therese*  s attitude.-  She  began  to  have  an  aversion 
for  him.  Rousseau  was  all  too  conscious  of  this  growing  estrange- 
ment and  bitterly*  complained  of  it.  Now  that  her  affection  for  him 
was  altered,  she  was  no  longer  his  emotional  companion  and  he  found 
that  outside  of  her  emotional  nature  there  was  nothing  of  interest 
in  her  character.  For  the  first  time  he  noticed  her  faults,  her  lack 
of  wit  and  intelligence  and  he  began  to  tire  of  the  very  ignorance 
he  had  so  desired  in  her.. 

Rousseau  was  oppressed  by  this  turn  in  affairs  and  again 
(1)  Confessions,  Parti©  2,  Livre  9.  p.  207 


. 


. 


. 

. . 


. 


41 


sought  comfort  in  solitude  and  in  his  imagination.  He  used  to  spend 
entire  days  wandering  about  in  the  woods  and  meditating.  His  thought 
turned  to  the  past  and  his  imagination  surrounded  him  with  the  forms 
of  all  the  women  he  had  loved.  He  became  forgetful  of  the  present 
and  lived  completely  in  the  imagination  with  these  dream  creatures. 
Each  one  of  these  he  reviewed  and  analyzed,  stopping  longest  with 
Lime,  de  Warens  and  Therese.  But  as  he  meditated  on  his  past  love 
affairs  he  realized  that  something  had  been  lacking,  for  in  none  of 
them  had  he  been  really  satisfied.  The  longing  for  complete  satis- 
faction still  remained  with  him..  He  felt  in  need  of  loving  and  be- 
ing loved  by  a woman  who  would  understand  him  completely  and  give 
him  such  happiness  in  love  that  the  longing  in  his  heart  would  be 
quieted.  He  complained  that  he  had  never  yet  found  a woman  who  coulc 

do  this.  Mme . de  Warens  and  Therese  had  done  much  for  him,  but  they 

had  been  able  neither  to  give  nor  to  inspire  the  type  of  ideal  love 
for  which  he  yearned. 

Comment  se  pouvait-il  qu'avec  une  ame  nature llement  ex- 
pansive, pour  qui  vivre  c'etait  aimer,  je  n'eusse  pas  trouv^  jusqu'a- 
lors  un  ami  tout  a moi  un  veritable  ami,  moi  qui  me  sentais  si  bien 
fait  pour  l'^etre.  Comment  se  pouvait-il  qu'avec  des  sens  si  combus- 
tibles, avec  un  coeur  tout  p£tri  d'amour  je  n'eusse  pas  du  moins  une 
fois  brule  de  sa  flamrne  pour  un  objet  determine?  Devore  du  besoin 

d' aimer,  sans  jamais  1' avoir  pu  bien  satisfaire;  je  me  voyai s attein— 

dre  aux  portes  de  la  vieillesse,  et  mourir  sans  avoir  vecu.  Ces  re- 
flexions tristes,  mais  attendri ssantes  me  faisaient  replier  sur  moi- 
meme  avec  un  regret  qui  n'etait  pas  sans  douceur.  II  me  semblait  que 
la  destinee  me  devait  quelque  chose  qu’elle  ne  m'avait  pas  donne . 
A'quoi  bon  m' avoir  fait  na^tre  avec  des  facultes  exquises,  pour  le s 


- 


42 

laisser  jus  qu'a  la  fin  sans  eraploi?  Le  sentiment  de  mon  prix  in- 
terne en  me  dormant  celui  de  cette  injustice  m’en  dedommageait  en 
quelque  sorte,  et  me  faisait  verser  des  larmes  que  j'aimais  a laisser 
couler . 

He  was  disappointed  at  not  having  found  any  evidences  of 
the  ideal  love  in  real  life.  Since  he  couldn’t  experience  it,  he 
determined  to  enjoy  it  in  the  imagination.  Thus  he  surrounded  him- 
self with  imaginary  persons  whom  he  made  to  look  and  act  as  he  will- 
ed. At  first  this  was  somewhat  objective,  that  is  to  say,  Rousseau 
stood  on  the  side  directing  his  personages,  but  with  a sentimentalist 
such  as  he  was  a method  of  this  sort  was  not  possible  for  long.  He 
soon  became  affected  by  the  emotions  he  put  in  his  dream  people.  He 
could  no  longer  be  an  outsider,  so  he  entered  into  the  imaginary 
play,  identifying  himself  with  his  hero,  putting  traits  of  some  of 
his  friends  in  his  other  characters,  putting  them  in  situations  sim- 
ilar to  some  in  his  own  life  and  finally  laying  the  scene  in  Switz- 
erland, at  Vevey,  on  Lake  Geneva,  where  he  had  spent  such  melancholy 
days.  Thus  the  picture  became  completely  subjective  and  was  pervad- 
ed with  Rousseau's  emotional  experiences  both  past  and  present,  with 
even  a few  yearnings  in  the  future. 

In  the  following  quotation  we  have  his  own  account  of  his 
dream  characters. 

Je  me  figurai  1 ’ amour^ 1' ami  tie , les  deux  idoles  de  mon 
coeur,  sous  les  plus  ravissantes  images.  Je  me  plus  a les  orner  de 
tous  les  Charmes  du  sexe  que  j'avais  toujours  adore.  J'imaginai  deux 
amies.  . . Je  les  douai  de  deux  caracteres  analogues,  mais  different?; 
de  deux  figuresj  Non  pas  parfaites,  mais  de  mon  gout,  qu'animaient  li 


Ul  C°nfe  ssions,  Partie  2.  Livre  9.  -p.  244. 


43 


bienveillance  et  la  sensibilite.  Je  fis  l'une  brune  et  l'autre  blonde, 
I'une  vive  et  l'autre  douce,  fune  sage  et  l'autre  faible;  mais  d'une 
si  touchante  faiblesse,  que  la  vertu  semblait  y gagner.  Je  donnai  a 
l'une  des  deux  un  amant  dont  l'autre  fut  la  tendre  arnie,  et  merne  quei- 
que  chose  de  plus;  mais  je  n'admis  ni  rivalite,  ni  querelles,  ni 
jalousie  . . . l^pris  de  raes  deux  charmants  modules,  je  m' identifiai s 
avec  1' amant  et  l'arni  le  plus  qu'il  m'etais  possible;  mais  je  le  fis 
aimable  et  jeune,  lui  dormant  au  surplus  les  vertus  et  les  defauts 
que  je  me  sentais. 

(1) 

At  first,  he  did  not  conceive  of  the  idea  of  writing  a 
novel;  but,  with  his  dreaming,  his  passion  increased  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  it  had  to  have  an  outlet.  It  was  then  that  he  began  to 
write  down  what  had  been  dwelling  in  his  imagination..  This  was  the 
beginning  of  la  Nouyelle  Heloise.  During  the  winter  that  followed 
he  wrote  tt wo  parts  of  it.  With  the  coming  of  spring  an  incident  oc- 
curred which  had  a marked  effect  on  Rousseau  and  incidentally  on  his 

/ 

work.  Mine . d'Houdetot,  a sister  in  law  of  Mme.  d'Epinay,  paid  him  a 
visit.  Mme.  d'Houdetot  was  married,  to  a man  of  disagreeable  temper- 
ament, who  neglected  his  wife  for  another  woman  and  did  not  care  in 
the  least  when  she  formed  a liaison  with  M..  de  St.  Lambert.  She  was 
now  living  at  Eaubonne,  a short  distance  from  1' Hermit age.  It  was 
in  the  absence  of  her  husband,  and  lover,  when  she  was  very  lonely, 
that  she  had  the  idea  of  making  a visit  to  Rousseau,  whom  she  had 
once  met  in  Paris* 

After  this  first  visit  she  came  again.  Both  enjoyed  walk- 


(1)  Confessions,  Part  2,  Livre  1,  p.251 


• 

. 

■ 

. 


. 


44 


ing,  and  spent  many  happy  hours  together  strolling  around  the  woods, 
Jean  Jacques  fell  madly  in  love  with  her;  she  played  the  game,  pre- 
tending to  be  ill  love  with  him  but  never  for  an  instant  did  her  real 
affection  turn  from  St.  Lambert.  During  a period  of  nine  months 
Rousseau  and  Mme . d'Houdetot  met  every  day  secretly  in  the  woods,  and 
spent  hours  there.  Mme.  d'Houdetot  now  began  to  realize  the  magni- 
tude of  Rousseau's  passion;  that  as  a lover  he  wished  the  privileges 
of  a lover.  Not  having  any  deep  love  for  him,  her  problem  was  to 
save  herself  and  spare  his  feelings  to  the  best  of  her  ability.  She 
thought  of  a plan  which  she  put  in  action.  She  wrote  to  Rousseau 
commenting  on  the  beauty  of  their  friendship,  which  she  said,  nothing 
should  mar.-  She  told  him  that  she  loved  St  - Lambert  but  considered 
Rousseau  her  best  friend  and  wished  to  keep  him  so.  Should  he  be 
carried  away  by  his  passion  he  would  bring  her  great  unhappiness  and 
their  beautiful  friendship  would  be  ruined.  Shortly  after  this  St. 
Lambert  returned.  She  confessed  to  him  her  relations  with  Rousseau. 
Ke  forgave  her  and  for  her  sake  even  pretended  friendship  for  Rous- 
seau. The  three  met  several  times  after  this,  but  the  friendship 
soon  broke  up. 


I 


As  we  remember,  Rousseau  was  writing  la  Nouvelle  Keloise 
when  he  first  met  Mme . d'Houdetot.  His  writing  did  not  cease  during 
his  love  affair,  but  was  greatly  intensified  by  it.  Rousseau  now 
put  into  his  work  not  the  passions  felt  for  dream  personages  but  an 
absorbing  passion  for  a real  woman.  This  woman  had  come  to  be  em- 
bodied in  his  dream  heroine,  Julie,  as  Rousseau  the  real  lover  was 

embodied  in  his  hero  St.  Freux.  Thus  Rousseau  had  a double  passion 
for  the  real  and  for  the  ideal,  the  one  intensifying  the  other. 


* - 


v>« 


. 

•- 

. 

45 


The  plot  of  la  Nouvelle  Heloise  is  a simple  one. — St. 

Preux  is  a tutor  to  Julie,  daughter  of  baron  d'^tange.  St.  Preux 
falls  madly  in  love  with  Julie,  but  does  not  know  that  his  love  is 
returned.  He  writes  letters  to  her  of  his  passion,  and  begs  her  to 
send  him  away  as  he  cannot  stand  being  near  her  without  speaking  of 
his  love.  Finally,  in  a letter  she  confesses  her  love  for  him.  Un- 
known to  her  parents  this  mutual  passion  increases,  until,  acting  on 
a sudden  impulse,  Julie  yields  to  her  passion.  Then  follows  a per- 

I 

iod  of  bitterness  and  remorse  for  her,  in  which  St.  Preux  tries  to 

i 

i 

console  her  by  telling  her  she  has  given  herself  for  love  and  that 
is  as  it  should  be.  The  real  nature  of  their  relations  is  still  un- 
known to  the  parents,  but  they  realize  that  St.  Preux  wishes  to  marry 
Julie.  The  baron  is  very  angry,  and  forbids  Julie  to  see  her  lover 
again.  St.  Preux  gees  to  Paris.  Letters  full  of  grief  and  despair 
at  parting  are  then  written.  Julie's  mother  discovers  the  letters; 
realizing  the  true  nature  of  the  relations  which  have  existed  between 
Julie  and  St.  Preux,  she  receives  such  a shock  that  she  dies  soon 
after.-  Shortly  after  this  Julie  is  seriously  ill  with  small-pox- 
St.  Preux  in  a frenzy  rushes  to  her  bedside  and  catches  the  disease; 
but  both  recover.  Then  Julie  accepts  a suitor,  M„  de  Wolmar,  whom 
her  father  proposes.  She  does  not  love  him  and  intends  to  be  faith- 
ful to  St.  Preux  only,  but  at  the  altar  she  is  taken  with  a religi- 
ous fervor  and  solemnly  swears  to  herself  to  remain  faithful  to  her 
marriage  vows  and  to  give  herself  entirely  to  the  fulfillment  of  her 
new  duties  as  the  wife  of  M-  de  Colmar. 

Six  years  pass  in  which  St.  Preux  spends  the  life  of  a 
wanderer;  Julie  spends  the  calm  life  of  a married  woman  doing  her 
household  tasks  and  caring  for  her  children.  St.  Freux  then  returns 


. 


. 


46 


from. his  wanderings.  Julie  tells  Wolmar  all  about  the  past,  and  he, 
having  the  utmost  faith  in  her  writes  to  St.  Preux  asking  him  to 
come  to  their  home  to  live.  St.  Preux  accepts.  When  he  realizes 
the  generosity  of  Wolmar  and  the  confidence  he  has  in  the  tv/o  former 
lovers,  St.  Preux  determines  to  be  worthy  of  this  confidence.  Then 
follows  a struggle  for  the  lovers.  Both  are  pursued  by  memories. 

To  further  show  the  confidence  he  has  placed  in  them,  Wolmar  goes 
away  for  a time  leaving  them  alone.  In  this  period  oo*  Preux  almost 
gives  in  to  his  passion,  but  Julie  restrains  him.  With  the  return 
of  Wolmar  the  danger  passes,  and  the  three  again  live  happily  under 
one  roof.  So  the  story  goes  on  until  it  is  brought  to  a close  by 
an  accident  which  causes  the  death  of  Julie.  One  of  her  children 
falls  into  the  lake.  Julie  saves  him  but  dies  from  the  shock  and 
exposure . 

La  Nouvelle  Heloise  is  the  most  important  romantic  work 
of  Rousseau..  Here  all  his  romantic  traits  are  seen  in  full  develop- 
ment. The  whole  work  is  filled  with  his  own  emotional  experiences; 
the  emotions  of  the  characters  being  his  own  emotions,  the  events 
being  a repetition  of  some  of  the  events  of  his  life.  This  strange 
idea  of  having  Julie,  St.  Preux  and  Wolmar  live  together  peacefully 
and  happily  comes  from  an  early  experience,  when  Mme . de  Warens, 
Claude  Anet  and  Rousseau  lived  just  such  a life;  and,  again,  from 
the  idea  of  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  St.  Lambert  and  himself  in  such  a re- 
lationship. When  he  makes  Julie  so  faithful  to  duty  that  she  over- 
comes her  passion  for  St.  Preux,  we  see  Rousseau's  experience  with 
Mme.  d'Houdetot,  when  at  her  request  he  controls  his  passion  in  or- 
der to  preserve  their  friendship.  Some  of  the  romantic  traits,  out- 
side of  subjectivity,  which  are  clearly  shown,  are 


unbridled  emo— 


' 

. 

. 

. 

_ 

47 


tion,  passionate  love,  sentimentality,  melancholy,  tears  and  despair; 
and  throughout  the  whole  production  we  see  Rousseau’s  great  love  of 
nature  and  his  ability  to  bring  nature  into  harmony  with  the  emotions. 

In  the  following  passages  we  have  good  examples  of  unbridled 
passions,  overwhelming  grief  and  sentimentality.  The  first  is  the  . 
anger  of  baron  d’Etange  on  finding  that  his  daughter  loves  her  tutor. 

II  remarqua  ma  contenance  basse,  eperdue,  humili^e,  in- 
dices de  mes  remords.  S' il  n'en  tira  pas  la  consequence  de  ma  faute, 
il  en  tira  celle  de  mon  amour;  et  pour  m’en  faire  plus  de  honte,  il 
en  outragea  l’objet  en  des  termes  si  odieux  et  si  m£pri sants  que 
je  ne  pu  . . . le  laisser  poursuivre  sans  1 ' interrompre  . . . Au 
nom  du  ciel,  lui  dis-je,  daignez  vous  apaiser;  jamais  un  homme  digne 
de  tant  d' injures  ne  sera  dangereux  pour  moi . A 1’ instant  mon  p^re, 
qui  crut  sentir  un  reproche  \ travers  ces  mots,  et  dont  la  fureur 
n'attendait  qu'un  pretexte,  s’elan^a  sur  ta  pauvre  amie:  (Julie)  pour 
la  premiere  fois  de  ma  vie  je  rejus  un  soufflet  qui  ne  fut  pas  le 
seul ; et , se  livrant  a son  transport  avec  une  violence  €gale  a celle 
qu’il  lui  avait  coatee,  il  me  maltraita  sans  management,  quoique  ma 
m&re  se  fut  jet&e  entre  deux,  m'e.ut  couverte  de  son  corps,  et  eut 
repu  quelques-uns  des  coups  qui  m’etaient  portes.  En  reculant  pour 
les  eviter,  je  fis  un  faux  pas,  je  tombai,  et  mon  visage  alia  donner 
contre  le  pied  d'une  table  qui  me  fit  saigner. 

The  following  passage  is  a good  example  of  unbridled  emo- 
tion and  romantic  grief.  It  occurs  where  St.  Preux  has  been  forced 
to  leave  Julie. 

(1)  La  Nouvelle  Heloise,  Partie  1,  Lettre  63,  p.  245. 


. 


. 


. 


. 


48 

J»ai  vu  1* insense  se  Jeter  a genoux  au  milieu  de  1‘escalier, 
en  baiser  mi  lie  fois  les  marches,  et  M.  d’Orbe  pouvoir  h.  peine  l‘ar- 
racher  de  cette  froide  pierre  qu'il  pressait  de  son  corps,  de  la  tete, 
st  des  bras,  en  poussant  de  longs  g£mi ssement s . ^ ^ 

When  St.  Preux  goes  to  the  bedside  of  Julie,  who  is  very 
ill,  we  get  a romantic  illustration  of  emotion,  grief  and  sentimental- 
ity. 

II  te  vit,  et  se  tut;  il  l’avait  promis:  mais  quel  silence! 
[1  se  jeta  a genoux;  il  baisait  tes  rideaux  en  sanglotant ; il  elevait 
les  mains  et  les  yeux;  il  poussait  de  sourds  ge mi ssement s ;’ il  avait 
peine  a contenir  sa  douleur  et  ses  cris.  Sans  le  voir,  tu  sortis 
nachinalement  une  de  tes  mains;  il  s'en  saisit  avec  une  espece  de 
fureur;  les  baisers  de  feu  qu’il  appliquait  sur  cette  main  malade 
b ’ evei llerent  mieux  que  le  bruit  et  la  voix  de  tout  ce  qui  t'environ— 

lait'(2) 

The  most  beautiful  and  most  romantic  touch  in  la  Nouvelle 
leloi se  is  the  following  nature  description.  In  the  absence  of  LI. 
de  Wolmar,  Julie  and  St.  Freux  walk  along  the  lake  and  re-visit  scenes 
loved  by  both  of  them. 

L’occasion  de  visiter  ce  lieu  si  cheri  dans  une  saison  plus 
agreable,  et  avec  celle  dont  1' image  l'habitait  jadis  avec  moi , fut 
le  motif  secret  de  ma  promenade.  Je  me  faisais  un  plaisir  de  lui 
nontrer  d'anciens  monumens  d’une  passion  si  constante  et  si  malheur- 
ause . Nous  y parvinmes  aprbs  une  heure  de  marche  par  des  sentiers 

(1)  La  Nouvelle  Reloise,  Partie  1,  Lettre  65,  p.  265. 

(2)  La  Nouvelle  Heloise,  Partie  3,  Lettre  14,  p.  487,  488. 


. 

. 

..  . 


49 


tortueux  et  frais,  qui , montant  insensiblement  entre  les  arbres  et  les 
rochers,  n’avaient  rien  de  plus  incommode  que  la  longueur  du  chemin. 
En  approchant  et  reconnai ssant  mes  anciens  renseignements , je  fus 

A \ 

pret  a me  trouver  mal ; rnai s je  me  surmontai , je  cachai  mon  trouble,  et 
nous  arrivames.  Ce  lieu  solitaire  formait  un  r^duit  sauvage  et  de- 
sert, mais  plain  de  ces  sortes  de  beautes  qui  ne  plaisent  qu'aux  ames 
sensibles,  et  paraissent  horribles  aux  autres.  Un  torrent  forme'  par 
la  fonte  des  neiges  roulait  a vingt  pas  de  nous  une  eau  bourbeuse,  et 
charriait  avec  bruit  du  limon,  du  sable  et  des  pierres.  Derri^re 
nous  une  chaine  de  rochers  inaccessibles  separait  l'esplanade  o"u  nous 
etions  de  cette  partie  des  Alpes  qu‘on  nomine  les  Glacieres,  parce  que 
d(enormes  sommets  de  glaces  qui  s’ accroissent  incessament  les  couv- 
rent  depuis  le  commencement  du  monde...  Des  forests  de  noirs  sapins 
nous  ornbragea-i ent  tristement  a droite.  Un  grand  bois  de  chdne  </tait 
a gauche  au  dela  du  torrent ; et  au-dessous  de  nous  cette  immense 
plaine  d’eau  que  le  lac  forme  au  sein  des  Alpes  nous  separait  des 
riches  cotes  du  pays  de  \aud,  dont  la  cime  du  majestueux  Jura  cour- 
ronait  le  tableau.  Au  milieu  de  ces  grands  et  superbes  objets,  le 
petit  terrain  ou  nous  etions  etalait  les  charmes  d'un  sejour  riant  et 
champetre ; quelques  ruisseaux  filtraient  a travers  les  rochers,  et 
roulaient  sur  la  verdure  en  filets  de  cristal;  quelques  arbres  fruit- 
i ers  sauvages  penchaient  leurs  tetes  sur  les  hotres;  la  terre  humide 
et  fraiche  etait  couverte  d'herbes  et  de  fleurs.  En  comparant  un  si 
doux  s'ejour  aux  objets  qui  1 ‘ environnaient , il  semblait  que  ce  lieu 
desert  cfut  £t  re  l*asile  de  deux  amants  e'chappe^s  seuls  au  bouleverse- 
rnent  de  la  nature. 

(1)  La  Nouvelle  Heloise,  Partie  4,  Lettre  17. 


' 


. 


. 


— gg- 

An  example  of  nature  being  in  harmony  with  the  emotions  is 
shown  by  St*  Preux.  When  he  is  melancholy  and  overcome  with  passion, 
he  sees  around  him  in  nature  the  same  gloom,  melancholy  and  sadness 
which  he  experiences  within..  The  landscape  is  gloomy,  the  sky  cloudy 
and  the  song  of  the  birds  is  mournful.  But  when  he  is  happy  and  full 
of  the  joy  of  living,  nature  is  filled  with  charm;  the  country  is 
delightful, the  sky  serene  and  the  songs  of  the  birds  full  of  tender- 
ness and  cheer. 

Before  the  Nouvelle  Heloise  was  quite  finished,  new  trouble 
arose  for  Rousseau;  Mine.  d’Epinay  turned  against  him  and  under  the 
circumstances  he  could  no  longer  live  at  1' Hermitage . From  there 
he  went  to  Mont-Louis.  There  he  finished  the  Nouvelle  Heloise  in 
1760,  which,  when  published,  took  Paris  by  storm. 

This  work  was  followed  by  nmi le  in  1762.  But  this,  in- 
stead of  bringing  him  success,  caused  him  unceasing  difficulty..  At 
this  time  in  France  it  was  a dangerous  thing  to  publish  works  about 
religious  and  political  questions.  Rousseau  took  the  risk,  and  spent 
the  rest  of  his  life  suffering  the  consequences.  Immediately  after 
its  publication  he  was  warned  of  his  danger  and  excape d from  Mont— 
Loui s . 


. 


51 


Chapter  VIII 

LAST  YEARS  AND  DEATH  (1762-1778) . 

We  have  taken  up  the  events  of  Rousseau's  early  life  in 
detail,  for  it  was  in  connection  with  these  events  that  his  roman- 
tic traits  developed.  Thus  his  early  life  was  analyzed  with  this 
development  in  mind.  Some  of,  his  romantic  traits  appeared  with  his 
Pi  scours  in  1750  but  they  were  showing  themselves  for  the  first  time 
and  were  somewhat  immature  and  as  yet  had  no  definite  form.  At  this 
time  he  seemed  to  have  been  testing  his  romantic  wings  and  not  until 
later  in  1760,  when,  driven  by  melancholy  and  suppressed  passion,  he 
wrote  la  Nouvelle  Heloise,  wrere  they  ready  for  flight.  In  this 
work  all  his  romantic  traits  burst  forth  fully  developed.  At  this 
point  a climax  is  reached.  All  his  romantic  traits  appear  with  the 
writing  of  la  Nouvelle  Heloise.  The  works  that  appear  after  it  have 
the  same  traits  rearranged  to  create  different  effects.  The  arrange- 
ment is  new,  but  the  traits  remain  the  same..  Since  no  new  traits  are 
developed  after  this,  it  is  of  no  use  to  our  present  purpose  to  an- 
alyze the  rest  of  his  life;  therefore  we  shall  touch  upon  it  only 
briefly. 

From  Montmorency  Rousseau  fled  to  Yverdun  to  seek  refuge 
at  the  home  of  a friend,  Roguin..  Here  he  hoped  to  have  peace  and 

rest  and  be  far  out  of  reach  of  the  many  disagreeable  letters  and 

/ 

threats  from  his  enemies  which  the  publication  of  Emile  had  produced. 
When  he  reached  Yverdun,  however,  he  found  that  news  of  this  book 
had  preceded  him  and  he  feared  that  there  would  be  no  rest  for  him 
there.  He  was  right  in  this  for  scarcely  had  he  established  himself 

in  the  home  of  M*  Roguin  when  he  received  orders  to  leave  that  re— 


, 

. 

• 

, 

' 

. 

- ■ r ' “~o!r 

gion  immediately.  From  Yverdun  he  went  to  Neufchatel,  then  to  Meti- 
ers, He  was  publicly  attacked  everywhere  he  went  and  was  still  pur- 
sued by  hostile  letters  from  his  enemies,.  This  soon  had  a disastrous 
effect  on  him.  He  began  to  suffer  from  an  extreme  nervous  disease 
which  caused  him  great  mental  torture.  He  imagined  that  everyone  was 
his  enemy  and  that  he  was  surrounded  by  spies  who  were  forming  plots 
against  him.  He  leftMoi tiers  and  went  to  the  island  of  St.  Pierre 
in  Lake  Bienne,  Here  he  had  rest  and  peace,  but  only  for  a short 
time,  for  he  was  again  ordered  to  leave  the  territory.  This  upset 
him  very  much  and  in  desperation  he  went  to  England.  There  he  was 
received  by  David  Hume  who  did  everything  he  could  to  make  Rousseau 
contented,  but  contentment  was  not  for  him  now.  His  restlessness 
could  not  be  calmed.  It  was,  however,  no  longer  the  restlessness  of 
youth  seeking  adventure  but  that  of  a man  in  despair  driven  from  one 
place  to  another.  Hume  continued  to  be  very  hind  to  him  but  in  time 
Rousseau  began  to  suspect  even  him.  Their  friendship  ended  when 
Rousseau  openly  accused  Hume  of  treachery.  There se  continued  to  ac- 
company Rousseau,  but  he  complains  that  she  was  not  the  same  There se 

he  had  loved.  She  no  longer  cared  for  him,  she  only  tolerated  him. 

This  ever  increasing  restlessness  would  not  permit  him  to  stay  long 
in  England  and  he  was  soon  on  his  way  back  to  France.  After  arriving 
there  he  wandered  about  half  crazed,  seeking  repose.  He  went  to 
Amiens,  Fleury-sur-Mendon,  Tyre,  Lyons,  Grenoble  and  again  visited 
Chambery  but  in  none  of  these  places  was  he  contented.  In  1770  he 
went  back  to  Paris  where  he  spent  the  last  eight  years  of  his  life. 

As  soon  as  he  was  settled  there  in  the  midst  of  familiar  surroundings 

the  memory  of  the  injustice  he  had  suffered  came  to  him  and  he  was 

seized  with  the  mad  desire  to  exonerate  himself  before  society,  he 


53 


began  by  giving  readings  from  his  Confessions  hoping  to  show  the  real 
motives  for  some  of  his  wrong  doings.  These  readings  were  stepped  but 
he  tried  another  means, — that  of  writing  a kind  of  analysis  of  his 
romantic  character,  telling  how  his  temperament  drew  him  into  situa- 
tions against  his  will  and  how  he  was  powerless  against  it-  This  worl 
is  known  as  Rousseau  ,juge  de  Jean  Jacques.  He  worked  .un-ceasingly  on 
it  for  three  years  inspired  by  the  idea  that  at  last  he  would  be  undei 
stood  and  pardoned.  When  he  had  finished  he  feared  to  have  it  pub- 
lished lest  some  of  his  enemies  should  destroy  it.  He  then  had  the 
strange  notion  of  entrusting  his  manuscript  to  Providence  by  putting 
it  on  the  Altar  of  Notre -Dame.  He  pictured  the  excitement  this  would 
raise  in  society  and  that  it  might  even  come  under  the  notice  of  the 
King.  He  took  his  manuscript  to  the  church  but  on  arriving  there  he 
found  the  door  to  the  altar  locked  against  him-  This  was  the  final 
stroke  which  unbalanced  completely  his  already  disordered  mind.  He 
no  longer  had  any  reason  and  rushing  from  the  church  in  a frenzy  he 
bemoaned  the  fact  that  now  even  heaven  had  turned  against  him.  He 
was  no  douijt  temporarily  insane,  but  he  recovered  from  this  soon  after 
and  we  find  him  somewhat  normal  mentally  except  for  a state  of  re- 
signed melancholy  which  lasted  until  the  end  of  his  life.  It  was 


during  this  period  that  he  wrote  his  Reveries  d*un  Promeneur  Solitaire 
In  May  1778  he  moved  into  a cheerful  little  cottage  at  Ermenonville 
near  Paris  and  there  passed  his  last  days.  Now  although  his  mental 
trouble  was  improving  his  health  began  to  fail  rapidl}".  He  felt  that 
the  end  was  near.  When  he  received  news  of  the  death  of  Voltaire  he 
said:  "I  shall  soon  follow  him."  Just  about  a month  later,  on  the 


second  of  July,  he  died.  He  was  buried  at  Ermenonville  but  later 


, 


. 


. 

- 


. 


54 

taken  to  Paris  and  placed  beside  Voltaire.  This  ends  the  unhappy 
history  of  an  unhappy  man. 


55 


Chapter  IX 
CONCLUSION. 

To  sum  up  the  romantic  traits  in  Rousseau’s  life  and  works 
and  to  show  their  connection  to  Romanticism,  we  may  say  first  of  all 
that  his  whole  life  was  made  up  of  a series  of  strange  incidents 
which,  added  to  his  native  tendencies, developed  his  romantic  traits 
and  caused  them  to  appear  in  his  works.  He  was  born  sickly,  inherit- 
ing from  his  father  many  we ak  characteristics  which  were  allowed  to 
develop  instead  of  being  controlled.  His  early  life  was  free  from 
any  sort  of  repression.  He  did  not  comprehend  the  meaning  of  self- 
denial,  self-sacrifice  or  self-control.  These  tendencies  in  early 
childhood  appear  in  such  things  as  lying  and  petty  thefts.  Later 
they  grow  into  hatred  for  routine  and  for  restraint  of  any  kind. 

In  this  period  we  see  the  impetuous  youth  leaving  one  po- 
sition after  another  on  some  pretext,  but  in  reality  because  he 
could  not  endure  being  under  authority.  His  only  joy  was  in  living 
a care-free  life.  To  wander  about  each  da}r,  free  from  restraint,  to 
go  into  ecstasy  over  some  of  nature’s  beauties,  to  dream  in  solitude 
or  to  give  himself  up  to  melancholy  and  the  pleasure  of  tears,  meant 
happiness  to  him.  Finally  these  tendencies  reach  a state  of  full 
development  and  we  see  them  in  his  works  in  the  forms  of:  a tendency 
to  be  influenced  by  his  environment,  originality  of  style,  novelty 
of  ideas  and  sentiment,  passionate  love , unbridled  emotion,  subjectiv- 
ity, sentimentality,  love  of  nature  both  for  itself  and  for  the  mood 
it  inspires. 

As  we  have  said;  the  prevailing  classical  or  pseudo-class- 
ical literature  of  the  eighteenth  century  was  somewhat  stilted,  or 


. 


56 


to  use  a better  term,  conventional.  Society  that  produced  this  liter- 
ature had  the  same  characteristics;  it  was  an  elegant  and  worldly 
society,  interested  in  perfection.  To  attain  this  state  it  spent  its 
time  going  from  one  (.celebrated  salon  to  another,  hearing  and  dis- 
cussing the  polished  imitations  of  classic  authors.  The  whole  period 
was  somewhat  superficial;  emotions  were  masked,  thoughts  followed  the 
course  marked  out  for  them.  All  originality  was  smothered.  It  was  at 
this  time  that  Rousseau  came  to  the  front  with  his  novel  ideas  and 
style,  and  with  one  stroke,  so  to  speak,  caused  a literary  revolution. 
In  his  first  works,  Les  Pi  scours,  is  shown  his  first  reaction,  one  of 
revolt  against  society,  which  he  condemns  as  the  root  of  all  evil.  In 
a detailed  description  of  primitive  man  he  shows  how  contented  this 
individual  was  before  civilization  came  to  take  from  him  his  rights 
and  privileges.  This  idea  being  entirely  new  to  French  society,  caus- 
ed much  comment,  both  hostile  and  friendly.  Originality,  in  an  age 

m 

where  it  had  been  repressed,  suddenly  made  its  appeal  and  won  favor ^ 
Having  reacted  to  society,  Rousseau  now  reacted  to  its  literature. 

That  is  to  say,  he  reacted  by  discarding, the. old  idea  that  definite 
rules  preside  over  literary  productions.  Rousseau's  works  were  not 
influenced  by  the  Classics.  They  were  purely  original,  not  imitations. 
He  did  not  know  Greek,  and  had  but  little  knowledge  of  Latin.  There- 
fore he  did  not  come  under  any  direct  influence  of  the  Classics.  To 
be  sure  he  did  read  Plutarch's  Lives  and  some  other  Classical  w orks, 
but  only  in  translation.  Then  too  these,  we  must  remember,  were  react 
at  such  an  early  date  and  he  received  from  them  such  strange  notions 
of  life,  that  if  anything  was  stimulated  by  this  reading  it  was  his 
romantic  tendencies  rather  than  any  tendency  toward  the  Classic  style. 


I . 


57 


Rousseau  wrote  about  what  interested  him,  and  this  was  usually  him- 
self, his  moods,  emotions  and  aspirations. 

After  Les  Pi  scours  appeared  la  Nouvelle  Heloise.  With  this 
all  barriers  were  broken  down  in  French  society  which  now  enjoyed 
and  became  quite  enthusiastic  over  this  new  literature.  In  it  they 
found  a poetry  of  love  and  nature  previously  unknown  to  the  eighteen- 
th century.  To  be  sure,  there  was  love  in  the  literature  of  the  cen- 
tury but  its  typical  form  was  cold-blooded . libertinage . Rousseau 
brought  to  love  a fervor  and  passion  and  a wholesomeness,  which  did 
not  fail  to  make  its  appeal  to  society.  La  Nouvelle  Heloise  was 
stamped  with  Rousseau’s  own  emotional  experience;  unbridled  emotion 
runs  throughout-  He  magnified  the  emotions  and  sufferings  of  his 
characters,  giving  them  the  same  degree  of  emotion  that  he  himself 
f elt . 

As  regards  nature,  he  brought  it  for  the  first  time  to  the 
attention  of  society  and  made  people  understand  and  feel  the  beauty 
of  country  sights,  the  wonders  and  majestic  beauty  of  mountains.  In 
making  nature  fit  in  with  moods  and  emotions  he  touched  a responsive 
chord  in  society  whose  emotions  he  had  now  awakened.  Rousseau  was 
weak  in  his  own  moral  character,  but  strong  in  influencing  other 
people..  His  .importance  as  a leader  and  reformer  cannot  be  overlook- 
ed. We  may  not  admire  his  personal  characteristics, — his  lack  of 

i 

moral  sense,  his  fickleness  his  inability  to  control  his  emotions  or 
adopt  a consistent  line  of  conduct,  but  we  cannot  help  admiring  his 
contribution  to  literature  for  as  the  father  of  French  Romanticism 
he  gave  to  French  literature  a new  literary  school,  whose  highest 

importance  consisted  not  so  much  in  what  it  produced  in  the  way  of 
literature,  as  in  the  new  modern  spirit  of  freedom  from  the  doinina- 


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~ —r — — 


Bibliography. 


A.  Works. 

Rousseau,  J.  J..  Oeuvres  Completes.  25  vols.  Paris, 

Dupont,  1823-26 
v.  I-II  Les  Di scours 
v.  III-IV  Emile 

v.  VIII-IX  La  Nouvelle  Heloise 
v.  XIV-XVI  Les  Confessions 

Rousseau,  J.  J.  Collection  Complette  des  oeuvres. 30  vols. 
Deux  Ponts,  1782-84 
v.  XX  Reveries  du  Promeneur. 
v.  XXI -XXII  Rousseau  juge  de  Jean  Jacques 

B. .  Criticisms 

Abry,  E.,  Audic,  C.,  Crouzet,  P.  Histcire  illustree  de 
la  Litterature  Franchise.  Paris,  Didier,  1918. 
Albert,  P.  La  Litterature  Franpaise  au  Dix— Huitieme 
Siele.  Paris,  Hachette,  1904. 

Babbitt, I..  Rousseau  and  Romanticism.  Boston,  Houghton 
Miff  in  Co.,  1919. 

Barni , J.  Histoire  des  Idees  Morales  et  Politiques  en 
France  au  Dix<- Huitieme  Siecle.  2 vols.  Paris, 
Bailliere,  1867. 

Chuquet,  A..  J.  J.  Rousseau.  Paris,  Hachette,  1901. 
Compayre7,  G.  J.  J_  Rousseau  and  Education  from  nature. 
New  York,  1907. 

Faguet,  E.  Les  Amies  de  Rousseau.  Paris,  Lecene,  1910. 
Gribble,  F.  Rousseau  and  the  Women  he  loved.  New  York 


t 

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Scribners,  1908. 

Hudson,  Wm.  Rousseau  and  Naturalism  in  Life  and  Thought. 
New  York,  Scribner,  1903, 

MacDonald,  F.  J.  U.  Rousseau,  a new  criticism.  2 vols. 
New  York,  Putman, 1906. 

Macdonald,  F.  Studies  in  the  France  of  Voltaire  and 
Rousseau.  London,  Unto/ln,  1895. 

Morley,  J.  Rousseau.  2 vols.  London,  Chapman,  1891. 
Nisard,'  D.  Iiistoire  de  la  Langue  et  de  la  Litterature 
Fran^aise.  8 vols.  Paris,  Colin,  1909. 

Texte,  J.  J.  J.  Rousseau  et  les  origines  du  Cosmopoli- 

✓ 

t anisine  Litteraire.  Paris,  Hachette,  1895. 
Wright,  C..  H.  A History  of  French  Literature.  New  York, 
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